Platinum: Beyond Time and Space--A Pokemon Journey
by RemiScarlet58
Summary: Before her family moves to Sinnoh from Hoenn,14 year-old Alanna catches a Ralts to be her starter Pokemon.Once in Sinnoh, she and Ralts begin their journey to defeat the Elite Four, battling other Trainers, egotistical rivals, and a mysterious organization that aims to create a new world. Narrated by Ralts, this is Alanna's journey. Based off of Platinum.
1. Captured

**Hello, and once again, hello and welcome to Platinum: Beyond Time and Space-A Pokemon Journey! This is a story about a Ralts and her trainer Alanna as they travel across the Sinnoh region. As mentioned in the summary, this story will be somewhat based off of Platinum Version, but my own original content and characters will be the main focus. It will also have anime elements mixed in.**

 **This takes place sometime after fairy-types are discovered, but before Mega Evolution is studied.**

 **Also,** "normal text with quotations" **indicates that a human is speaking, and** normal text without quotations **indicates Ralts is narrating.**

" _Italics with quotations"_ indicates that a Pokemon is speaking, albeit in its own language.

 **Bold will be used when a Pokedex is being used.**

 **Oh-kay, now that we've gotten that fun and exciting information out of the way, on to the story!**

* * *

 _Day 0_

* * *

I peeked through some bushes, and smiled as I found what I was looking for. There, a few steps away, was an Oran Berry tree! I was pleased with my find. The sun was beginning to set, and I hadn't eaten anything since early this morning.

I focused my powers on a particularly-plump berry that was much too high for me to reach. It was at least two Gardevoir-lengths above my head. I willed my Confusion to form around the berry, taking control of it. I imagined plucking the berry, and in real life the same action occurred. I let my Confusion release the berry and fade away as the berry dropped right into my outstretched hands.

Gleefully, I ate the sweet Oran Berry. Juice dribbled down my cheeks, but I didn't mind. Oran Berries were among my favorites to eat, right beside Pecha Berries.

I finished that one, and was about to pluck another when I heard the sounds of multiple larger Pokemon heading my way.

I tilted my head in confusion. There weren't any larger Pokemon that lived here; at least, not any that I knew of. The biggest residents in this forest were Azumarills and Masquerains. No, wait, there was also a Gyarados living in the largest lake, but I had never met him. He attacked everyone who came near his lake, so we all avoided him. These creatures sounded like they were much smaller than a Gyarados, but bigger than an Azumarill.

I stayed where I was, curious to see the unknown Pokemon. I hoped they were friendly, whoever they were. I could show them around the forest, tell them where all the berry trees were.

The creatures came closer, until they came into my field of view.

There were three of them, with a Dustox in tow.

These Pokemon looked so...strange. All three walked on two legs, had the oddest skin color. It was sort of like a pale beige, but with a pinkish tone. I couldn't describe it exactly. I'd never seen such a color before. They were mainly hairless, although they had an abundance of fur on their heads. The smallest one, who was a little bit taller than a Gardevoir, had fur that ended just past its shoulders. It was a pretty crimson color, and it had bright green eyes to compliment its fur. The second-tallest one had its leaf-green fur tied back, and green eyes the same shade as the smallest's. The tallest one (only by slightly; it and the medium-sized one were actually pretty evenly matched in terms of height) had very short red fur. It had red eyes.

They wore an assortment of some woven material I'd never encountered before. The smallest wore a purple garment over its torso that extended to its waist and came up to its wrists. The arm parts of the garment were green. Strangely, there were two small bulges on its chest for some reason. It wore a large green satchel on its back. On its legs, it wore lavender leg-coverers that reached from its waist to just below its knees. The thing covered each of its legs separately. It wore a green loop around its waist. Some dark green things covered its ankles, but it also wore black...things over the green things and its feet. I couldn't quite tell what they were made of. It also had strange white things in its ears.

The middle one wore a sunset-orange garment on its torso. This garment only covered its shoulders, and extended slightly past its waist. Its chest also had two bulges on it, but they were bigger than the smaller one's. It didn't have leg coverings; only a long sky-blue piece that hung down from its waist, like a Gardevoir's gown. It too wore the strange feet coverings, but this one's were dark blue.

The tallest creature wore a long black garment that completely covered its torso and arms. Underneath it was a white garment. For some reason, its chest was completely flat, unlike the other two. It wore leg coverings like the small one, but this one's were black, and went all the way down to its ankles. Its feet coverings looked different, but I couldn't get a good look. All I could discern about them was the color, which was brown.

"Look, there's a Ralts. Do you want to catch that one?" the middle one asked the smallest, pointing to me.

I gasped, for I then realized what these things were. They were _humans_. I stared at them in utmost fascination. I'd never seen any before! My mother used to tell me stories about them when I was very young. She explained how they had the power to build magnificent things, and were capable of befriending Pokemon.

I knew humans sometimes walked through this forest, but I had always been too late to catch a glimpse of one. Now, _three_ of them were staring right at me!

The smallest human looked carefully at me. I stood up straighter, and wiped the berry juice off of my chin. I wanted to make a good impression on these three humans.

"...Yeah, sure," the small one shrugged after a moment.

I beamed. It seemed I had passed a test. I could understand the humans well enough, which was fortunate. Their language was similar to the Pokemon language in grammar and structure.

"Here, Alanna, use Dustox to catch it. Tell Dustox to use Silver Wind on Ralts," the tallest one advised as it handed the small one a red-and-white sphere of some sort.

The top of the ball was red, and the bottom part was white. There was a black line in between the two colors, with a white button in the middle.

"Alright. Um, Dustox, use Silver Wind!" the small one commanded.

" _Sorry about this,_ " Dustox apologized to me as he flapped his wings.

Multiple white crescents shot out from its wings and headed straight for me.

" _Why are you—OW!_ " I shrieked as I was struck by the assault. The force of the attack made me stumble backwards. I accidentally tripped over a tree root, and I fell flat on my back.

 _Humans also like to battle using their befriended Pokemon_ , Mother's words came to me as I lay there in a daze.

"That's right, Alanna! Now catch it!" I distantly heard the middle one exclaim in approval.

 _Catch me…?_ I had barely formed the thought when the red-and-white sphere collided with my head.

Before I could react, I felt all of my cells be...manipulated...into some sort of energy. The bi-colored sphere sucked me inside of its center, and closed, entrapping me.

I blinked, trying to process what on earth had just happened. I had been suddenly attacked by the humans, and now they had put me inside of this sphere-thing. As I looked around, I realized that it wasn't all that bad in here, actually. It was warm in here, and despite the hard exterior shell, the inside was quite cozy. I could also sense what was going on in the outside world. The humans were intensely watching the sphere I was trapped in. There was also a warm, fuzzy sense inside of the sphere. Somehow, I knew it came from the smallest human. The feeling told me that the small human wanted to be friends. It, no, _she_ , I learned from the feeling, was warm and kind, and would treat me well.

Despite the aggressive way of showing her friendship, I decided I would become friends with her. She was young, like me, and I'd always wanted to see how humans lived.

" _Yes_ ," I agreed in content as I went still inside of the sphere.

"Oh...I...did it," I could hear the small human speak in surprise.

"Congratulations, 'Lanna," the tall one hugged her. I sensed the small human's joy.

The small human walked over to my sphere, and pressed the button in the middle. Presently, my cells were reconverted into energy, and I eagerly leaped out of the sphere. I re-formed into my normal shape a moment later. The small human kneeled down until she was at my level.

"Hello, Ralts. I'm Alanna. I'm your new Trainer," my new mistress introduced.

" _Hello!_ " I greeted brightly.

"We're moving to another region tonight. I'm sorry to take you away from your home all of a sudden…" Mistress frowned, rubbing my head sadly.

" _Huh?_ " I asked, tilting my head. I didn't understand.

"In a few hours, we're going to go on a boat that'll take us across the ocean, to the Sinnoh region. We'll arrive there tomorrow," Mistress explained, a sad note in her voice.

I did not know what a 'boat' or 'sinnoh' was, but the thought of getting to see new places excited me. I'd always wanted to see the world, but I'd never gotten around to doing it. But now...now was my chance!

I was thankful for the arrival of these humans. They turned my life completely upside-down, but in the best way possible.

"We should head for Route 104 if we're going to catch the boat in time," the tall human advised as it returned Dustox back to his own sphere.

"Good idea. Come along, Alanna," the middle human nodded.

"Oh...alright," Mistress sighed as she turned to me. "Would you like to stay out here, or go back in your Poke Ball?"

'Poke Ball'? Was that what the sphere-thing was?

" _Can I stay out here? Pleeeeease?_ "I asked, tugging at Mistress' torso garment. She smiled.

"Of course you can. Come on, Mom and Dad are going to leave us behind!" Mistress exclaimed as she hurried to catch up to the taller humans.

Ohhh, so the other two humans were her parents! That made sense. I ran after Mistress, and we slowed down once we had caught up to her parents.

Soon we exited the forest, and I gasped in surprise. There, right in front of me, was a human city!

It was more majestic than I'd ever imagined. Interspersed between trees were these tall, gray structures that almost looked to be made out of stone, but not quite. The city was situated on a small hill, so as we walked through the city we gradually began to walk uphill. Dirt paths led everywhere, and both humans and Pokemon were walking to and fro all around us. There city held an equal amount of humans structures and nature. I was pleased that humans were so thoughtful as to not disrupt the balance of nature too much.

One tall human was holding the hand of a Shiftry, and there was another tall human walking with a human who was as tall as me. I twirled all around, eager to see all of this strange new place. I'd peeked at the city before, but I'd never been so bold as to actually step _in_ it.

I witnessed one human enter one of the giant not-stone structures. This structure had a red roof, and had a Poke Ball depicted on it.

" _What is that, Mistress?_ " I asked, tugging on Mistress' leg coverings and pointing to the red structure.

"Hm? That? That's a Pokemon Center. It's where sick or injured Pokemon are taken to be healed. Trainers also use it as a place to rest, chat, and eat. There's one in every town. Petalburg City's no different," she explained.

Petalburg City...I liked the name. It reminded me of flowers.

"Have you ever been here before, Ralts?" she asked. I shook my head.

"Oh. Well, all these box-like things are called 'buildings'. They're made of steel, wood, or bricks. Every building has a different function. Some buildings are people's homes. Others are places where people work. And some buildings house information. There are more functions, but that's a basic outlook to it. In a city, people and Pokemon work together to better the lives of everyone," Mistress explained.

I was fascinated by these buildings' functions. I wondered what all of them did. Humans sure had their lives put together.

" _What are 'steel' and 'bricks'?_ " I asked.

"Hm...I'm not exactly sure what it's made of, but steel is a human-made substance that is _very_ strong and hard. It's very durable, and can withstand a lot of force. That's why we make our buildings out of it. Houses are more likely to be made of bricks and wood. Bricks are small blocks of baked clay. We stack them on top of each other, and seal them together so they won't fall off," said Mistress.

" _Ohh...Fascinating_ ," I said.

After a while, we left the city, and came to a flat grassy plain. I could distantly heard an odd whooshing sound over and over. There was also a tangy scent in the air too for some reason.

" _What is that noise?_ " I asked, standing on my toes, trying to get a glimpse of whatever was making the whooshing sound.

"What noise? ...Oh, you probably mean the ocean, Ralts. We're almost there," Mistress said.

The... _ocean_? Mother had told me about the ocean once. How it was a deep blue, and went on forever and ever. How it was one of her favorite sights in the whole world.

As the sun continued its descent, we arrived at the ocean ten minutes later.

It was even more glorious than Mother had described. The water stretched as as far as I could see, all the way to the horizon. Gentle waves formed near the shore, and caressed the sand before returning back to sea, only to perform the same action again and again. The sunset glittered all across the top of the water, turning each wave orange, then pink, then purple. The whooshing sound I had been hearing was the waves as they formed, surged, then broke. High up above were blue-and-white flying Pokemon. The tangy scent was stronger than ever here, but somehow it only added to the beauty of this marvelous landscape.

To the right, about a ten-minute walk away was a large wooden structure that extended above and far out into the water. Next to the wood thing was the largest object I'd ever seen.

It looked to be made of steel as the buildings had been, and it had a vague semi-circular shape, although the bottom half of it was submerged underwater. But on top of the semi-circle was another, smaller, rectangular building. Both the semi-circle and rectangle were white, with tiny black stripes all over it. On top of the rectangular structure were two large black cylinders that poured out smoke.

I was alarmed. This giant thing, whatever it was, was on fire!

" _That thing's on fire!_ " I shouted, wringing my hands in worry.

"No, no, it's fine Ralts. It's supposed to do that. That's the boat," Mistress assured me, taking my hand and squeezing it. I sensed the action was both for me and for her.

That was a boat? And it was... _meant_ to be on fire? Humans were so strange...

"We're going to get on it. It'll take us across the ocean to our new home," the medium-sized human said kindly to me.

"I'm sure this is quite a shock for you," the tallest human added.

"I promise it'll be okay, Ralts," Mistress said, squeezing my hand again. She was reluctant to enter the boat, but was trying to be strong for her parents, I could sense.

I stared at the boat uncertainly. It was very large...there was no doubt it would sink. And I couldn't swim.

"Come on, Ralts," Mistress led me forward as she and her parents walked over to the boat.

" _It'll sink, Mistress_ ," I said worriedly, pulling my hand out of her grip..

"It looks like it will, doesn't it? You'd think something that big can't possible float. ...Dad, how _do_ boats float?" Mistress asked, looking at the tallest human.

"Well, boats partly sink and partly float, depending on its weight and the weight it carries. The greater the weight, the more it sinks. So it's important to know the maximum weight a boat can carry before it sinks. Boats also distribute their weight fairly evenly across a wide surface of water. Water exerts a lot of pressure, and it pushes this pressure out in every direction. So, when a boat sits partially submerged, the water is supporting it in every direction except up. This means that there's a net force, called an upthrust, supporting the boat from underneath. The boat sinks due to its weight, but the upthrust pushes the boat to the surface. Does that make sense?" the tall human—Mistress' father—responded. The middle one must be her mother, then.

"Kinda. Thanks," Mistress nodded.

I didn't quite understand all of it, but I thought I got the gist of it. The giant boat floats because pressure is pushing it towards the surface. Interesting.

" _But how does it move?_ " I asked.

"Um...This metal device called an engine uses a special liquid to power a giant propeller that goes round and round, like this," Mistress explained, twirling her finger in multiple circles. "This propels the boat to move forward. You can control where the boat goes by using a giant wheel to change the direction of the propeller."

" _Oh,_ " I said. Mistress' explanations made it all sound so simple, but it had to be more complicated than that.

We arrived at the wooden structure, which Mistress said was called a 'dock'. The humans handed a piece of a small white rectangles to a human sitting behind a table. We walked up a ramp, and onto the boat just as the night was starting to begin.

"Let's find our room first. Let's see, we're room number...103," Mistress's father said, looking at the small white rectangle he carried.

As we explored the boat, Mistress taught me the boat terms she was familiar with. The part we were walking on right now was called a 'deck'. The outside of the boat was called the 'hull'. The human who was in charge of the boat was called the 'captain'. We were called 'passengers'. The rooms where the passengers would sleep in were called the 'cabins'.

We entered the rectangular building, the one on top of the deck. Mistress' father led us down many narrow passageways. Mistress told me this was called a 'hallway'. The wooden rectangles that were all over the walls were called 'doors'. They all led to different rooms.

Eventually, We stopped in front of one door, and Mistress' father turned a peculiar circular object attached to the front of the door.

"Doorknob," Mistress explained before I could ask.

The doorknob turned, and to my surprise the door opened on its side, revealing a large room.

There were two large rectangular box-like objects on the left side of the wall. Both were covered in a light green material that was similar to the items the humans wore. Two fluffy cloud-like things adorned the left side of each rectangle. The room was colored light orange, and the floor was made of some sort of soft, woven material that was colored dark red. In the top-right corner was a table with four miniature tables with high backs. On the right side, opposite the two giant boxes was a purple, fluffy bench-looking thing.

On the opposite side of the room from where we were standing, the room was completely open to the ocean. One wrong slip, and we would tumble out into the water.

"Huh, this is nice. Like staying in a hotel. I do love the floor-to-ceiling windows," Mistress' father observed as we explored the room.

I went over to the far wall, wanting to get a closer look at the remaining sunlight that dappled the water's surface. I was just about to peer over the edge when my head bonked into something hard and invisible.

" _Ow!_ " I exclaimed, rubbing my sore head. Confused, I put my hands out, and I was surprised to find that there was an invisible barrier blocking my path!

"Careful, Ralts. These windows are so clean they look practically invisible," Mistress' mother advised me.

"' _Window'?_ " I echoed, unfamiliar with the word.

"It's made of glass, which is a clear hard substance that lets you look outside without actually having the outside come _in_ ," Mistress explained as she climbed on top of one of the fluffy boxes.

Suddenly, the boat began shaking.

" _Oh! What's going on?_ " I fretted, struggling to remain upright. A loud, honking noise boomed from outside, and outside I could see that the boat was moving backwards, towards the ocean.

"Oh, looks like we're taking off now. Alanna, your father and I are going to explore the rest of the ship. Do you want to come with us?" Mistress' mother asked.

Mistress sighed.

"No thanks. I'll just stay here with Ralts," she said. I turned away from the window and faced Mistress. I sensed she was unhappy.

"Oh, okay. Your have your phone with you, right? Just call if you need us," her mother nodded as she and Mistress' father left the room, closing the door behind them.

I climbed onto the box-thing Mistress was sitting on. It sank underneath my weight, and it was soft and cushy. I could easily fall asleep on it.

" _What's wrong?_ " I asked Mistress. She sighed.

"I don't want to move to Sinnoh. I like it here, in Hoenn," she said wistfully, gazing out the window.

" _What's a sinnoh?_ " I asked.

"It's the name of the land we're moving to. Supposedly it has a colder climate than Hoenn. I don't really like the cold," Mistress said, laying back on one of the fluffy rectangles and crossing her legs.

" _Why don't you just stay in Hoenn, then?_ " I suggested.

"I'm only 14; I'm not old enough to live on my own just yet," Mistress shook her head.

" _I'm only one-and-a-half winters old, and I left my mother many moons ago_ ," I countered gently.

"You're that young…? Anyway, it's different when you're a human. You can't live on your own until you're 18," Mistress sighed as she stared at the ceiling.

" _Why are you moving to this Sinnoh place?_ "

"My dad got a job offer that would pay him _way_ more money than he makes now. He decided to take it."

" _I am confused…_ "

"Oh, right, you've never left Route 102 before...Um, a job is a certain task that people do for other people. This could include growing food, teaching children, or building things. People do jobs to earn money, which is our measure of wealth. We exchange money for goods and services. We need money in order to obtain the things we need or want. People in Sinnoh offered my dad more money if he came to work for them," Mistress explained.

" _It sounds complicated,_ " I observed. " _What job does your father have?_ "

"He's a consultant. He helps people who need professional business advice. What's a business? Um, it's a group of people who work together to perform a service for other people. That's not quite the right description, but it'll do. Anyways, this place in Sinnoh want my dad to become a full-time consultant for them. Normally he only advises people for a short time, then moves on to the next place that needs his help. My mom's a police officer, meaning she makes sure that everyone's following the rules," Mistress explained.

" _Oh...What do you do, Mistress?_ " I asked.

"Well, I'm planning to become a Pokemon Trainer. A Pokemon Trainer is someone who visits different cities and battles powerful Trainers called Gym Leaders. I was going to start my journey last week, but then my dad told us about the job offer, and so I put it on hold. Tomorrow, when we arrive in Sinnoh, I'm going to begin my quest. ...It's funny, actually. For years I never held any interest in becoming a Trainer. I was always content to stay at home, in Rustboro City. But then last year my dad was promoted, and he had to fly out all across Hoenn. He'd always send me postcards of the places he visited. I was amazed. I never knew Hoenn was so diverse! He visited a town near a volcano, a city where everyone lived in trees, and even an island in the middle of the ocean! It was then I decided I wanted to see the world too. Suddenly the life of a Trainer was appealing to me. I wanted to bring a Pokemon from Hoenn with me, so we could explore Sinnoh together. Normally I'd get a Pokemon from Littleroot Town, but I didn't want to. I wanted a wild Pokemon to be my first Pokemon. I'm glad it was you," Mistress said quietly, rubbing my head.

" _I am glad you chose me too,_ " I agreed.

"Sinnoh's supposed to have a marsh, an eternal snowstorm, and a giant mountain range. I can't wait to see it all," Mistress added, smiling briefly. I agreed. Those places _did_ sound intriguing.

As the evening wore on, Mistress taught me the names of everything in our room, as well as the woven things she wore, which were called 'clothes'. Mistress was wearing a long-sleeved purple-and-green shirt, with lavender capris, a green belt, dark green socks, and black tennis shoes. The green satchel was called a 'backpack'. Mistress opened it up and showed me the contents: a red 'notebook', a 'pencil', extra clothes for tomorrow, special clothes she will sleep in called 'pajamas', a 'night bag' with a 'toothbrush', 'toothpaste', 'deodorant', and a 'comb'. She also had two 'water bottles', 'chips', 'cookies', and a 'can' of something called 'Pokemon food'.

At the mention of food, my stomach growled.

"Oh, are you hungry? Here," Mistress beckoned, opening the can and shaking a few brown pellets into her hand. She held out her hand to me.

"Try some," she invited. I looked at her, then cautiously I took a piece of food from her hand.

I took a bite. The texture was semi-solid, and I bit into it easily. The taste was sweet, but not too sweet that it was unbearable. There was a faint fruity flavor to it as well, something that I thought was a nice touch. I downed the rest of the pellet, and eagerly ate more.

When I was full, Mistress handed me a cup of water from the bathroom. I drank that, and together we laid down on the bed.

" _What are those things in your ears, Mistress? Your parents do not have any in theirs,_ " I asked, staring at her ears. There was a white device inside each of her ears, attached to a transparent cord that curled up around the tops of her ears. The cord was also attached to a beige-pink crescent that curved around the top half of the outer rim of her ears.

"Hm, these? These are my hearing aids. Without them, I can't hear very well. You see, when I was young, I got very sick. I survived, obviously, but the disease had destroyed most of my hearing. I've been wearing these ever since. My aids amplify sound waves and send them to my ears, where they then go to my brain. I can hear most things, but not everything. I have a hard time hearing quiet noises or people who are soft-spoken. Crowds are also a problem because I can hear a gazillion different conversations at once, and I have a hard time distinguishing between them," Mistress explained.

I was astounded. I had no idea that there were devices that could give the deaf and hard-of-hearing the gift of sound! Back in the forest, we'd had no such device. It was purely survival of the fittest. I wondered if humans could also give the gift of sight to the blind. That was surely impossible, even for them.

Presently, Mistress' parents came back as the moon started to rise. Her father's face had a greenish tint.

"You okay, Dad?" Mistress asked as her mother helped him over to the other bed. He groaned and flopped down on it.

"He hasn't gotten his sea legs yet. He'll be fine," her mother assured as she went to the bathroom to give him a cup of water.

"If only it would just _stop rocking_ for a few minutes...!" he moaned as he sipped at the water.

I had almost forgotten about the rocking. I found it soothing, personally. It reminded me of my mother rocking me to sleep in her arms when I was an infant.

"Oh, I also got a call from the moving company. All of our things are waiting for us in our new apartment," her mother added.

"Awesome," Mistress said, then yawned. She got up from her bed and took out her pajamas and night bag.

"I'll be right back; gonna get ready for bed," she told us before walking into the bathroom and shutting the door.

I yawned. I was starting to get tired as well. I wasn't sleepy, though. I was too excited for tomorrow. I'd get to see an entirely new place tomorrow, and I'd get to explore it all with Mistress! I was glad I accepted her offer of companionship. She was nice, and I knew my life would only get better from here.

Mistress returned, wearing a long pink shirt and pink pants. She picked up my Poke Ball.

"I'm going to return you for the night, okay? I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight, Ralts," she informed.

" _Oh...goodnight,_ " I drooped. I wanted to remain out here with the humans, but I guess I could stand being in my ball for tonight.

I allowed myself to be summoned inside. From there, I could sense Mistress climbing underneath the covers of her bed. Her parents took turns getting ready for bed as well, and soon all three of them were in bed.

I closed my eyes, trying to focus on sleep. But I couldn't get sleep to come. Anticipation for tomorrow kept me awake.

 _No,_ I told myself firmly, _go to sleep. You won't be of any use if you're exhausted._

It took me a while, but eventually, I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **The boat explanation was a summarized version of what I a) read and b) understood. I never** _ **was**_ **adept at physics…**

 **The fun will begin in the next post. This series will take me a little longer than usual to produce, since our main protagonist is totally ignorant of the human world. But on the plus side, the next post will introduce the first rival, and the first Pokemon Alanna catches in Sinnoh~**


	2. The Hunter

_Day 1_

* * *

I was thankful when Mistress let me out of my Pokeball when she woke up the next morning. I liked being out with her. It was awfully lonely inside my Pokeball…

She and her parents changed clothes and got ready for the day, then her mother led us out of our room, down a couple hallways, and into a large room filled with tables, chairs, and other humans and Pokemon. My jaw dropped open at the sight. There were many Pokemon I'd never seen before; I had never realized how diverse we were!

Across the room was a tall green Pokemon that had a wicked smile and dark green spikes all over its body. And just a few tables away was a small, spherical pink Pokemon with large eyes and a small tuft of fur on its forehead. There were more Pokemon I'd never seen before, but before I could take a good look at them a tall human in white clothes walked up to us.

"Good morning! My name is John, and I'll be your server today. Is everything to your satisfaction?" it said in a deep, husky voice.

"Yes, it is, thank you." Mistress' mother nodded graciously. Her father didn't say anything. His face had a greenish tint to it, and he looked quite miserable.

"Excellent! May I start you off with a drink?" the unknown human asked as it handed my new family large, colorful cards.

"Yes, I'll have coffee with cream and sugar. My husband will have the same. Alanna, what do you want?" Mistress' mother replied.

"I'll just take some water, thanks," Mistress said, smiling faintly. I could tell she was trying hard to be polite. She was strongly emanating of homesickness.

"Very well. I'll return shortly." the human nodded, and walked to another table nearby.

"We should arrive in Sinnoh around noon. Alanna, while we're unpacking would you like to get your Pokedex? The moving company will help us set up our furniture, so there won't be much for you to do until they're done." Mistress' mother offered, turning to Mistress.

"Sure." Mistress shrugged indifferently.

"Okay. Let's see, as I recall, the Pokemon Lab is in the town directly to the south of Jubilife. It's supposed to only be an hour's walk away, so it won't be too far." her mother went on. Her father remained silent, staring down at the table.

Her mother noticed, and winced.

"Bah, I should have asked our waiter for some medicine for seasickness...Think you can hold on until he comes back?" she asked her husband.

"I have some." a human from the next table over piped up, turning towards us.

"Oh, might we have some please? My husband's not taking very well to the trip." Mistress' mother laughed sheepishly.

"Sure! I know how you feel. Boats and I do _not_ mix." the friendly human laughed, reaching into its bag and pulling out a small white cylinder. It took off the lid, and shook out a small red pellet. It handed the pellet to Mistress' father, who took it gratefully.

"Thanks," he said, smiling gauntly as he swallowed it whole.

"I'm Lynn. I'm visiting my cousin in Floaroma Town." the human continued, holding out its hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Morgan, and this is my husband, Tom. This is our daughter, Alanna, and her Ralts." Mistress' mother introduced as she shook its hand.

"Hello." Mistress nodded.

" _Hi!_ " I smiled up at the nice human.

"We're moving to Jubilife City." Mistress' mother continued. The Lynn-human's eyes lit up.

"Oh, you'll _love_ it there! There's so much to do and see. It's great! There's the Contest Hall, the Trainer's School, the TV station...there's something for everyone in Jubilife. It's definitely one of my favorite places to visit. Where are you moving from?"

The adult humans fell into a deep conversation about where they were from, and what was available in Sinnoh. The human in white returned bearing drinks for us all, including some water for me, and my family told it what they wanted to eat. The human made strange scribbles on a piece of paper, then it left.

In the meantime, I wanted to learn more about the other Pokemon in the room. I figured Mistress would be okay if I left for a few minutes, since she was with her parents and the friendly Lynn-human, so I wandered across the room and tapped on the tall, spiky green Pokemon's leg.

" _Hm? What do you want?_ " he asked, turning to me.

" _Hello! I'm Ralts. Who are you?"_ I asked. I had to crane my neck in order to meet his eyes.

" _My name is Cacturne. I come from the desert. You?_ " Cacturne asked, kneeling down to my level.

" _I come from a forest. What is a desert?_ " I asked, tilting my head in confusion.

" _Mm, it is a place made entirely of sand! It is completely open to the sun, and it is very hot! There is little water, and at night the temperature plummets. Few can survive there...and I was one of them! Ah, now I miss it…_ " Cacturne explained, drooping a little.

" _Oh...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you sad._ " I frowned, feeling guilty about making him homesick. I had been selfish in just blatantly reminding him of where he came from, horrible as the desert sounded.

" _Ah, do not worry. I have a new home here, with my humans. That is all I need_." Cacturne rubbed the top of my head.

The human next to him looked over at me, and its eyebrows burrows in confusion.

"Hey, where'd this Ralts come from?" it asked. The human sitting opposite it looked over at me too.

"Did you lose your Trainer?" the other human asked me kindly.

"Ralts! There you are!" Mistress' voice rang out. I turned, and she was hurrying towards me.

"I'm so sorry, my Ralts slipped away without me noticing. What were you _doing_?" she said, the latter part to me.

" _I wanted to meet the other Pokemon. I didn't mean to make you worry._ " I bowed my head. I could sense Mistress' lingering worry, which was quickly being replaced by relief.

"It's fine. It was just talking with my Cacturne or something." the human who first noticed me waved a hand in dismissal.

"Oh...Again, I'm sorry for the inconvenience. Come on, Ralts. Our food is here." Mistress took my hand and led me back to our table, where dishes of food covered the surface.

"Oh, you found it! What was it doing?" Mistress' father asked as we approached. He looked much better. The greenish tint on his face was gone, and his eyes were bright. Whatever the Lynn-human had given him had certainly worked.

"She said she wanted to meet the other Pokemon." Mistress replied as she sat down. She handed me a bowl of Pokemon food. I eagerly dug in. I was famished!

"You can understand it?" Mistress' father asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Can't you?"

"Not like that. I know what Dustox wants, but that's only because we've been together for years. And I certainly can't interpret what it's saying _exactly_ , like you and Ralts. How do you know what it's saying?" he replied.

"Dunno...I just have a sort of... _feeling_ , as to what she's saying. It's hard to explain." Mistress shrugged in between bites of fluffy-looking brown circles.

"Like telepathy?" her mother suggested.

"Sort of, but not quite. Again, it's more of a feeling than actual words," said Mistress.

"Interesting." her father mused.

* * *

We ate breakfast, then afterwards Mistress and I sat on the front deck, looking out onto the ocean as we sailed to our new home. As we watched the waves roll by, Mistress explained to me the names and descriptions of the things we'd probably see in Jubilife City. She also taught me how to tell a male human from a female. I sat there, entranced by her stories of giant buildings that went to the sky and metal machines with wheels used for quicker transportation. I almost didn't believe her. There was no way all of those things existed. It wasn't possible!

When the sun was almost directly overhead, we saw our first glimpse of Sinnoh. Pokemon Mistress called 'Wingulls' circled overhead as a thin stretch of green land slowly peeked out from the horizon, growing bigger and bigger with every second.

" _Ohhhh!_ " I marveled, staring hard at the thin little bit of land.

"We're almost here," Mistress said quietly. She was sad, but I was excited. We had reached an entirely new continent! Granted, I had only seen a sliver of Hoenn, but the thought of exploring a new area filled me with anticipation. Where would Mistress and I explore first? A forest? A desert? Or maybe underneath the ocean itself?

As the minutes went by, the boat was eventually parallel with the shore. I couldn't see much of Sinnoh. It was mainly short beach and dense woodlands.

" _Why aren't we stopping? We've arrived_." I asked, turning to Mistress.

"The boat can't dock here; there's no port or anything." Mistress replied. She then explained what a port was and why the boat needed it.

Soon enough, the port became visible on the horizon. I jumped up and down and pointed to it in excitement.

"*sigh*...We should probably meet up with Mom and Dad. Come on, let's return to our room." Mistress suggested, turning away from the sight.

I could sense the sadness and slight fear radiating from her body, and I had a feeling that the real reason Mistress wanted to go back to our room was to get away from the sight of her new home.

I sobered up, realizing that my excitement must have been painful for her to watch. She did not want to be here, and my joy at being in Sinnoh only made her feel worse.

Even though I was secretly ecstatic that we would be arriving soon, I made myself look calm, not the bouncy thing I was just a few seconds ago. Silently, I followed Mistress back to our room. There, her parents were tidying up the room and getting ready to leave.

After twenty minutes or so, I jumped at least three feet when a loud honk boomed out of nowhere. I whipped this way and that, searching wildly for the source of the honk. Mistress chuckled.

"It's just the horn, Ralts. Nothing to be afraid of." she assured, smiling as she patted my head. Her smile didn't reach her eyes, though.

"Ready to go?" Mistress' father asked. Mistress nodded.

"Alright then, let's be off!" he beamed as he led us out of the room.

When we stepped off the boat, I saw tall gray buildings peeking out from above the treeline. We were in a wooded area, but a path led from the port and presumably to our new home.

Jubilife City. I rather liked the name. A jubilant city full of life...the people that lived there must be very happy. Maybe it'll make Mistress happy too.

"The city's only a couple minutes away. Should I call a taxi, or do you wanna walk?" Mistress' father was asking her mother as we stepped off the pier.

"Let's walk. Our apartment isn't supposed to be too far from the docks." her mother suggested.

"Sounds good. You doing okay, Alanna?" her father asked, looking back at us.

"Yeah, yeah." Mistress shrugged. Her parents stopped, and embraced her tightly.

"I know this has been rough on you. I miss Hoenn too," her mother said sympathetically.

"You've been really patient throughout all of this, and I appreciate that." her father nodded. Mistress sighed.

"Thanks. Don't worry about me; I'll get over it eventually. Besides, I have Ralts now to keep me company. I'm sure that once I start my journey I'll come to like Sinnoh." Mistress replied, smiling wistfully.

"I don't doubt it." her father agreed.

We began walking again. After a couple minutes, we eventually entered the actual city. I gasped.

Mistress hadn't been lying. Everywhere I looked, there were skyscrapers, cars, and people. There were _so_ many people walking all around! How many humans _lived_ here?!

I felt rather claustrophobic as we walked down the road, admiring the sights. The skyscrapers were too close together, I thought, and the pavement underneath was hard and uncomfortable to walk on. The air was chillier here than in Hoenn. There was also many strange scents in the air, not all of them pleasant. This city was kind of dirty.

There were all these TVs on the fronts of some buildings as well, each more colorful than the last and shouting things at us as we walked by.

I...didn't really like Jubilife City. It was overwhelming, with its noises, smells, and lack of space. There were also very few trees here, which made me sad. At least in Petalburg, nature and humans coexisted peacefully together. Here, it seemed that humans had stamped out as much nature as they possibly could. Did they not understand how grave a mistake that was?

And here I'd always thought of them as higher, intelligent beings. It was disappointing to learn that I had been wrong.

After a while, we stopped in front of a tall black building that looked exactly the same as all the other buildings here.

"Here we are! Let's go take a look." her father suggested.

We entered the building, and the smell of roses immediately hit me. I brightened. Perhaps there was a garden in this building.

There was a large staircase right next to the entrance. Mistress' father led us up it, and we got off on the second floor.

"We're in luck; we have a room with a view!" he beamed at us as he led us down a long, narrow white hallway covered in doors. The hallway was bare, with nothing to suggest who or what lived here.

We paused at the end of the hallway, and Mistress' father took out a key and opened up the door on the left. Inside was a wide space, with a balcony on the far right wall. Boxes upon boxes were stacked everywhere

"It's actually about the same size as our old house, so at least we won't be cramped for space. Alanna, your room's the first one to the right, down the hall," her father said, pointing to the left. I peeked around the door, and saw that there was another blank hallway. There were two rooms to the right side of the hall, and a closed door at the very end.

Mistress and I walked inside the apartment, exploring it. Behind the main room was a spacious kitchen—was that what Mistress had called it?—and the balcony was big enough for chairs to be put down comfortably. Then we explored Mistress' room. It was smaller than the main room, but it had a window that let us see the street. The room next to hers was bigger, and Mistress explained that it would be her parents' bedroom. The door at the end of the hall led to a small bathroom.

"What do you think?" her mother asked once we had thoroughly explored the apartment.

"It's nice," Mistress said.

"Good, I'm glad you like it. I just got off the phone with the moving company; they'll be over soon to help us unpack. Oh, by the way, the company your father's going to work at sent us welcoming gifts! Take a look," her mother said, holding out a small blue box.

Curiously, Mistress opened up the package. I climbed on top of a pile of boxes, eager to see what it was. Inside the box were three straps, one green, one red, and one blue.

"They're called Poketches. That's the product my new company makes. They're like watches, but they have all sorts of apps. Let's see, these come pre-installed with...both an analog and digital clock, a calculator, a calendar, a pedometer, and a stopwatch. Oh, and as an added bonus, they also included an alarm clock app. Huh, I see they don't take their employees and their families for granted." her father commented, looking at a piece of paper that was in the box.

"I'll take the red one," Mistress said, attaching the Poketch-thingy around her left wrist. She tapped a red button that was on the side of the screen. The screen changed.

"Huh, this is actually kinda cool." she remarked, surprised. I could tell she liked the strange little device. I was glad. Jubilife, horrid as it was, was already making her happy. I could stand to live in this city if it made her happy.

"Isn't it? I'm surprised we don't have anything like it in Hoenn. I think it'd be a real hit there. Hm. While we're waiting for the movers, do you want to go get your Pokedex?" her father asked as he attached the blue Poketch to his wrist.

"Sure. You said the Pokemon Lab's an hour's walk south from here?" Mistress nodded.

"That's right, it's in a place called Sandgem Town. Just follow the path until you get there. The town is supposed to be rather small, so you shouldn't get lost. Look for the big white building with the blue roof. Try to be home before dinner, alright?" her mother asked as she put on the green Poketch.

"I'll try. I have my phone, so I'll call you if anything happens." Mistress said, waving a small device. It looked to be a bigger version of a Poketch, minus the straps.

"Great. Before you leave, we have a gift for you. Well, _gifts_ , actually," her father said, rummaging through the pile of boxes until he found a small, circular green one with a red bow on the top.

Mistress eagerly opened it, revealing five shiny Pokeballs.

"Oh! Awesome! Thanks!" she grinned, hugging her parents.

"These should tide you over for a while. You remember how to catch a Pokemon, right?" her mother asked as Mistress put the Pokeballs into her backpack.

"Yeah, yeah. I caught Ralts only yesterday, remember?" Mistress chuckled.

"Just making sure. Alright, have fun, and be safe!" her mother waved as Mistress and I began to head for the door.

"Tell us how it went!" her father chimed in.

"Will do! Back in a bit! Bye!" Mistress called as we left the apartment.

I was itching to get out of this city and explore this 'Sandgem Town' place. I also wanted to know what a Pokedex was.

We followed the road south until we eventually reached the outskirts of the city. I sighed in relief as we left skyscrapers and metal for trees and fresh air. The air smelled so much _cleaner_ outside the city.

"You don't like Jubilife City, Ralts?" Mistress asked, reaching into her backpack and pulling out a couple of apples. She handed one to me and bit into the other one.

" _It's too...man-made_ ," I said truthfully.

"I gotcha. City life isn't for everyone. Rustboro City, where I come from, is kind of like Jubilife. Not as modern, of course, but it's definitely one of the most advanced cities in Hoenn. Damn, I'm getting homesick again…" she sighed. Fretfully, I tried to think of a safer topic.

" _Um...what's a Pokedex?_ " I asked through a mouthful of apple. Mistress seemed relieved as I was at the change of subject.

"It's a device that records the data of any Pokemon seen or encountered by the owner. It's an invaluable tool for a Trainer, as it can quickly tell you all you need to know about a certain Pokemon. Most Trainers have one." she explained.

" _Oh. That sounds handy_." I remarked.

"Yes, it is." Mistress agreed.

The terrain soon started to get a bit craggy. We had to carefully jump down ledges and leap over small ditches. It was fun, actually, getting to traverse the area with Mistress. I hoped we would be doing a lot more in the future.

* * *

It was mid-afternoon by the time we arrived in Sandgem Town. We stood on top of a hill, looking down upon the city. Thankfully, there were no skyscrapers, and there were no roads either.

Just _perfect_ ~

"'Look for the big white building with the blue roof'...Aha! There it is!" Mistress said triumphantly, pointing to a building that was bigger than the rest.

" _Is that where you'll get your Pokedex?_ " I asked.

"Yep! Come on, Ralts!" Mistress said, racing down the hill. I followed her as she jogged into the city. We stopped in front of the lab, panting heavily.

She hesitated briefly before entering the building.

"Hello?" she called as we stepped inside.

I gaped at the sights inside. All kinds of machines hugged the walls, beeping and humming incessantly. A good number of humans were monitoring the machines, while a couple small Pokemon ran around the room.

One of the two small Pokemon had a blue head and body. Its back half and collar was black, and it stood on four paws. Its long black tail had a yellow star-like thing at the end. The second Pokemon was slightly taller. It was green, with a simple yellow face and green bib. It looked like it had a bud on the top of its head. It had two short stubby legs and no arms.

Everyone inside stopped what they were doing and looked at us.

"Yes? May I help you?" the human closest to us asked as she walked over, picking up the green Pokemon and embracing it.

"Uh, hi, I'm Alanna and I'm a new Trainer. I came here to obtain a Pokedex." Mistress introduced shyly. She was nervous all of a sudden for some reason.

"Oh, I see! You'd have to talk to Professor Rowan about that. He's in the back room; let me go grab him real quick."

"That's alright, Roseanne, I'm right here," a new, gruff voice said from behind a closed door in the back as the woman began to turn around. A tall male human with white hair and a beard stepped out into the main area. I heard Mistress gulp, then she took a few deep breaths to steady herself. I did not know why she was so nervous; surely these humans wouldn't do anything bad.

" _Why is the human scared?_ " the green Pokemon asked, comfortably nestled in the Roseanne-human's arms.

" _I don't know. Maybe she's afraid of us?_ " the blue and black Pokemon supplied, rubbing up against Mistress' ankles. Mistress looked down in surprise.

"Hm! Shinx likes you. My name is Professor Rowan. What did you say your name was?" the male human asked as Mistress knelt down to cautiously pet the purring Pokemon.

"Alanna," Mistress said, scratching behind Shinx's ears.

" _O_ _h, that feels nice_ ," Shinx said, breathing a sigh of content.

"Hm. You seem rather old to be a new Trainer, Alanna." the Rowan-human observed as the Roseanne-human put the green Pokemon down. Both human and Pokemon seemed to be reluctant to be apart from each other, but it seemed the Roseanne-human had to return to whatever she was doing.

"I know. Originally I didn't want to be a Trainer, but now I've changed my mind. I'd like to learn more about Pokemon." Mistress agreed as she stood back up.

Hm! An excellent reason! You are never too old to learn about Pokemon. I can tell you will make a great Trainer. This is your Ralts, yes? I can sense the bond you two have. I would be happy to entrust a Pokedex to you." the Rowan-human nodded in satisfaction, and he reached into a pocket in his long brown coat and pulled out a red rectangle.

"Here you go, Alanna. The finest Pokedex in all of Sinnoh. Use it well," he said, giving it to Mistress.

"Oh, thank you, sir. I won't let you down." Mistress vowed as she stared at the Pokedex as if it was the rarest thing she'd ever seen.

" _There's a new Trainer!_ "

" _Oh, a new Trainer? Let's go see!_ "

" _Will it pick me, I hope?_ " three new voices came from the room the Rowan-human had come from.

Three new Pokemon raced out into the main area, practically tripping over themselves in their haste to see Mistress.

The first Pokemon to reach us was small, blue, and bipedal. It had a round head, a small yellow beak, and was covered in downy feathers. The second one was slightly taller, and also was bipedal. It was mainly colored orange and cream, and its tail was on fire. It didn't seem to mind the flame, however. The third Pokemon walked on four legs, and had a brown shell on its back. It was a light green color, and had a twig attached to the top of its head.

"Ah, there you three are," the Rowan-human said to them. To us, he said, "These are the three Pokemon we offer to new Trainers to use as their starter. But since you have your Ralts, you won't be taking any of them, unfortunately. Try out your new Pokedex on them. The one at the left is the water-type Piplup, the one in the middle is the fire-type Chimchar, and the one on the right is the grass-type Turtwig."

" _Oh...She already has a Pokemon…_ " Piplup drooped sadly.

" _That's okay, though! Another new Trainer will come along and pick one of us!_ " Turtwig beamed.

"Oh, good idea. Let's see…" Mistress held out the Pokedex to Piplup. To my surprise, a female human's voice came out of the device.

" **Piplup, the Penguin Pokemo** **n.** **A poor walker, it often falls down. However, its strong pride makes it puff up its chest without a care,** **"** the voice said cheerfully.

"Awesome. Now let's try out the rest!" Mistress smiled as she turned the Pokedex next on Chimchar and Turtwig.

" **Chimchar, the Chimp Pokemon. It is very agile. Before going to sleep, it extinguishes the flame on its tail to prevent fires. Turtwig, the Tiny Leaf Pokemon. The shell on its back is made of soil. On a very healthy Turtwig, the shell should feel moist.** "

" _Ohhh! Us next! Us next!_ " Shinx and the green Pokemon chorused, jumping up and down and clamoring at Mistress' feet. She giggled as she turned the Pokedex on them and me.

"Oh, all right! Hold on."

" **Shinx, the Flash Pokemon. The extension and contraction of its muscles generates electricity. It glows when in trouble. Budew, the Bud Pokemon. Sensitive to changing temperature, the bud is said to bloom when it feels the sun's warm touch. Ralts, the Feeling Pokemon. If its horns capture the warm feelings of people or Pokemon, its body warms up slightly."** the Pokedex explained helpfully.

"I love it. Thanks again, Professor." Mistress beamed up at the Rowan-human.

"Hm, it was my pleasure. ...I actually have to get back to my research now, but hope to see you again soon, Alanna," the professor said.

"What are you studying, if I may ask?" asked Mistress as she pocketed her Pokedex.

"I study evolution. What causes it, and why some Pokemon do not evolve while most do. Is evolution a form of maturity, or is it something else? That is the basis of my research," the professor said solemnly. His voice was filled with passion and dedication. Obviously he cared a great deal about what he was studying.

"Pokemon evolution...how fascinating." Mistress observed thoughtfully.

"Indeed. Well, Alanna, I will leave you now. Good luck on your journey. I hope you meet many Pokemon," he said as he began to turn around.

"I do too. Goodbye, sir." Mistress nodded as the lab Pokemon began following him.

"Goodbye," the Rowan-human said as Mistress and I left the lab.

"Alright, got my Pokedex! Now I'm ready to start my journey. I think we'll spend the night at our new place and set out tomorrow. That way, we'll have the entire day to travel to the next town. Sound good, Ralts?" Mistress asked me as we began heading back for Jubilife City.

" _That sounds nice. Will we come back here?_ " I asked back.

"Dunno. I'll have to get a map and see where the nearest Gym is." Mistress shrugged.

"' _Gym'?_ " I echoed.

"A Gym is a place where Trainers battle a particularly strong Trainer called the Gym Leader. If they defeat the Gym Leader's Pokemon, then the Trainer receives a Badge as proof of his or her victory. Once the Trainer has collected eight Badges, they can challenge the Pokemon League. The Pokemon League is a difficult place; you have to battle the region's four strongest Trainers in a row. If you manage to do that, then you have to face the Champion. The Champion is the strongest Trainer in all of the region. If he or she is defeated, then the victor becomes the new Champion. That's what we're going to be working towards, Ralts. Becoming the Champion of the Sinnoh Pokemon League," Mistress said in a dreamy voice.

" _We can do it._ " I smiled. Together, Mistress and I could do anything!

We left Sandgem Town, and headed back into the rocky forest that separated Sandgem from Jubilife. After a few minutes of walking, Mistress pulled out one of her new Pokeballs.

"I saw we catch ourselves a Pokemon, Ralts. I'm itching to battle with you. How's about we catch the first Pokemon we encounter?" Mistress offered, with a confident smile at me. I was not adverse to the idea of gaining a new friend for our journey.

" _That sounds nice. But how do you catch a Pokemon? Don't you just throw a Pokeball at one?_ " I inquired.

"That's part of it, yeah. First you battle a wild Pokemon to make it easier to catch. Then you toss a Pokeball at it. Pokeballs are designed to convey the Trainer's desire of friendship to the captured Pokemon. If the Pokemon accepts, then it has been successfully caught. If it doesn't, then it escapes from the Pokeball and the Trainer tries again." Mistress explained. That certainly made sense with what I had experienced.

" _I see._ " I nodded, satisfied with that answer.

We looked and looked for wild Pokemon, but we couldn't find any. We heard bird Pokemon in the nearby treetops, but though we scanned the trees thoroughly, none came out.

We took a break when we came to a small river. Mistress dipped her feet in the water while we ate some crackers.

"Ugh, nothing's showing up...But I am _determined_ to catch a Pokemon before we return to Jubilife!" Mistress said vehemently, putting her fist in her hand.

" _Yes!_ " I agreed.

Then I turned around. I had heard the bushes behind us rustling.

"Hm? What is it?" Mistress asked, twisting around to face the path.

The bushes rustled for a second, then a Shinx's head poked out.

" _What's going on?_ " he asked curiously, staring at us warily.

Mistress' eyes went wide, and she scrambled to her feet.

"A Shinx! Finally, the first wild Pokemon we've seen! Ah, and it's so cute too! I'm totally gonna catch it! Ralts, what moves do you know?" Mistress exclaimed, quickly putting her shoes and socks back on.

" _Um, Growl and Confusion._ " I supplied.

"Excellent. Shinx! I am going to catch you if it's the last thing I do!" she told Shinx.

" _Uh, what?_ " he asked, tilting his head quizzically.

" _We're going to battle now!_ " I beamed, eager to please Mistress. I would do my very best and help her catch Shinx!

" _...Oh. Could we not?_ " Shinx asked nervously.

I didn't have time to answer, for Mistress told me excitedly to use Growl.

I opened my mouth and let out a piercing cry that distorted the air. Shinx paused and flinched, startled by the power in my attack. He quickly shook off his trepidation, and began charging at me. I seized up in fright. I'd never been in an actual battle before; what should I do?!

"A Tackle attack...Dodge it!" Mistress called out. Oh. That made sense.

I managed to leap out of the way a split second before Shinx could Tackle me. I landed neatly on my feet a couple Gardevoir-lengths away while Shinx skidded to a stop. As he whirled around to face me again, Mistress ordered me to use Confusion. Gladly, I obeyed.

I held my hands out, and focused my attention on Shinx, willing my psychic power to catch and take hold of him. Before he even knew what was happening, I successfully caught him in my mental grasp. I then lifted him up in the air, instinct telling me to drop him on the ground.

"Wha—hey!" Shinx squeaked as I lifted him higher and higher, until he was as high as two Gardevoirs stacked on top of each other. I did this with great ease; months of maneuvering berries off of tall trees had served me well.

Once he was high enough, I slammed him straight into the ground. I tried to be gentle, but even so it appeared I had over-estimated my strength. Shinx lay on the ground, dazed and unmoving.

" _Oh! Are you okay?_ " I asked concernedly.

"Good job, Ralts. Go, Pokeball!" Mistress yelled as she threw a Pokeball at Shinx. Like it had did with me, the ball tapped Shinx on the forehead, then he was converted to a red energy and sent inside the ball.

Mistress and I watched the intensely as the ball wiggled and wiggled. It seemed like it would never stop. I hoped Shinx would accept our friendship.

"Come on…" Mistress encouraged gently.

As if in response, the ball stop wiggling, and made a dinging noise.

" _Is that good?_ " I asked.

"Hell yeah it is! We caught our first Pokemon together, Ralts! Oh, I'm so proud of you!" Mistress gushed, picking me up and swinging me around before embracing me tightly. I beamed. Mistress' joy was all I could sense from her. It seemed she had gotten over her homesickness, at least for right now. I was pleased.

"Good job," an unknown voice said from across the river.

We looked and saw a human male leaning up against a tree in the shade. I frowned. Where had he come from? And why hadn't I heard him approach?

"How long were you standing there?" Mistress demanded as she picked up Shinx's Pokeball.

"I saw most of your battle. You're awfully good for a beginner," the human said as he peeled himself off of the tree and stepped into the light.

He was tall, as tall as Mistress' mother. He wore all black, and had neat, uniform dark green hair. The confidence that radiated from him was almost palpable.

"I went to Trainer's School last year. Who are you?" Mistress explained as the male easily jumped across the narrow river.

"I'm Hunter. I'm from the Unova region. And you are?" he responded pleasantly.

I looked up in alarm. This human was a hunter? Oh, this was bad. I hoped he would just move on and not hurt us. I doubted we were tasty.

"Alanna. From Hoenn. This is my starter, Ralts." Mistress replied, nodding towards me. I said nothing. I did not like this situation one bit. The hunter gazed at me thoughtfully.

"You know, just yesterday I caught a Ralts myself. Care to have a battle? Your Shinx versus my Ralts, and your Ralts versus my starter?" he offered.

"Shinx is injured from Ralts' Confusion. Why not just battle our Raltses?" Mistress objected.

"There would be a type disadvantage between the two; besides, I'd like to see how our first Pokemon compare against one another. As for your Shinx, I have an Oran Berry. That should do the trick," the hunter said, reaching into his black backpack and pulling out a familiar blue berry.

Mistress hesitated, then nodded, accepting the berry from the hunter.

"Fine. I've never battled another Trainer before; this oughta be fun. Shinx, come on out!" Mistress smiled wickedly as she released Shinx.

" _Ah, finally!_ " Shinx complained once he rematerialized. He stretched his limbs and gave his wounds a vigorous washing.

"Here, Shinx, have an Oran Berry." Mistress offered the berry to Shinx, who warily accepted it.

"Ready to battle again, Shinx?" Mistress asked. Shinx looked up mid-bite.

" _What?_ " he asked in alarm.

" _The hunter over there wants to battle us. We can't let him defeat Mistress! That'd be bad!_ " I told him fretfully. I _had_ to make sure I didn't lose. Who knew what this hunter would do if we lost?

Shinx stared at the hunter cautiously.

" _I don't want to battle,_ " he said bitterly, shaking his head.

" _Oh, come on. Do it for Mistress!_ " I begged.

"Alright, let's get started. My Ralts versus your Shinx. You can have the first move." the hunter invited as he and Mistress put a good amount of distance between them.

"Sounds good. Go, Shinx!" Mistress shouted, directing Shinx to the battlefield. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here, and he slowly and begrudgingly shuffled to the field. I stood next to Mistress' feet, keeping a sharp eye on the hunter. I did not trust him at all.

"Ralts, let's go!" the hunter commanded, throwing a Pokeball into the air. It opened, and a Ralts materialized on the other side of the field. The Pokeball landed neatly in the hunter's hand.

" _Ready to fight!_ " the other Ralts said with an anticipatory look at me. I frowned at him. He was supposed to be fighting Shinx, not me.

"Shinx, Tackle!" Mistress ordered. Shinx stood there for a second, biting his lip.

"...Shinx?" Mistress prompted after a moment.

" _I don't want to,_ " Shinx said, turning his back on Ralts.

"What's going on?" the hunter called.

"I don't know. Shinx, use Tackle on Ralts, please!" Mistress faltered.

" _I said I don't want to!_ " Shinx shouted angrily, shaking his head vigorously.

" _He doesn't want to fight._ " I told Mistress.

"What? Why not?" Mistress demanded.

"Your Shinx is being unruly." the hunter observed unhelpfully.

"I'm aware of that! I don't know why, though!" Mistress snapped as Shinx refused to move. I tried to get him to explain why he didn't want to battle, but it was like talking to a rock. A blue, obstinate rock.

"Hm. Perhaps it thinks you're too inexperienced?" the hunter suggested.

"What? I caught it though, right?" Mistress objected, staring at the hunter in confusion.

"All that means is you managed to catch it. If Shinx doesn't think you're worthy of its power, then it won't obey you. The only thing you can do is get stronger, and prove your worth to it. That'll take time, though, and it'll take more than just one battle to change its mind. Let's call this match a draw and move on to the next." the hunter suggested.

I could sense that Mistress didn't want to give up, but she also didn't want to further embarrass herself in front of this Trainer.

"Fine. Shinx, return." Mistress sighed reluctantly as she withdrew Shinx.

"Go, Ralts!" Mistress directed, with slightly more enthusiasm.

Eagerly, I stepped onto the battlefield as the hunter withdrew his own Ralts. I would make up for Shinx's disobedience. I _had_ to!

"Let's see how strong your Ralts is. Serperior, let's go!" the hunter yelled, throwing a different Pokeball into the air.

Out popped a large, green Pokemon. He had a long, serpentine green body with yellow markings on his torso. The tip of his tail had leaf-like appendages, and he almost appeared to be wearing a cape.

I faltered. I could sense the power this new Pokemon had. This hunter was no beginner like Mistress, that's for sure.

Just what had we gotten ourselves into?

"Uh...what is that?" Mistress asked nervously, sensing how outmatched we were right now. She pulled out her Pokedex, and aimed it at the Pokemon.

" **No data.** " the Pokedex chirped brightly.

"Your Sinnoh Pokedex won't work on a Unovan Pokemon like my Serperior. Allow me: Serperior, the Regal Pokemon, and the evolved form of Servine. It can stop its opponents' movements with just a glare. It takes in solar energy and boosts it internally. They raise their heads to intimidate opponents but only give it their all when fighting a powerful opponent." the hunter supplied, an amused smile on his face.

Intimidating glares indeed. I was frozen in fear, staring deep into Serperior's mesmerizing, disdainful eyes. He stared back down at me, assessing my strength. I cowered. I knew I wasn't good enough, not compared to this experienced foe.

"Serperior and I have been battling together for six years." the hunter went on, looking fondly at his Pokemon.

"Six _years_?! You didn't tell me you were an experienced Trainer, you prick!" Mistress shouted angrily.

" _...Submit._ " Serperior hissed at me softly. I blanched.

"Would it have mattered?"

" _YEAH._ I would never have agreed to battling starters with you had I known that!" Mistress stormed.

"You won't get anywhere if you take that kind of attitude into battles. You'll never become stronger if you don't push yourself." the hunter frowned, crossing his arms.

"There's pushing yourself, and there's suicide. This is the latter."

"So you're forfeiting?" the hunter scowled. Mistress clenched her fists. She was angry, but she also didn't want to be labeled as a quitter. She was too prideful.

"...I'll battle with you, but you're only allowed to use one move, and one move only. After that we're done. Deal?" she bargained.

"Given our disparity in strength, I am willing to accept those terms. You can start." the hunter agreed, smiling faintly.

"Oh shut up. Ralts, you ready?" Mistress asked in annoyance. I had still been staring at Serperior, but at the sound of my name, I came out of my trance.

" _Oh! Yes, Mistress!_ " I exclaimed hurriedly. Hopefully the hunter would be merciful and not use an offensive move against me.

"Good. Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

I caught the unmoving Serperior in my psychic grasp. That was the easy part. The hard part was lifting him high enough off the ground to cause damage when he fell. I struggled and strained, putting all my strength into lifting the heavy Pokemon. It was the most difficult thing I'd ever done. Before, all I'd ever lifted were berries, certainly never a large Pokemon. When Serperior had been lifted only a Kirlia-length off the ground, my mind gave out, and with a cry I released Serperior from my hold, dropping to the ground in exhaustion. Serperior landed neatly on the ground, never once changing his expression. He didn't even blink.

"Hm, your Ralts is certainly capable with its Confusion. Not many with its level of experience could lift Serperior that high." the hunter observed.

Did he...compliment me? But I hadn't made even a scratch on his Serperior!

Panting heavily, I managed to get back to my feet, praying that the hunter would be merciful.

"My turn. Serperior, Leaf Tornado!" the hunter commanded.

Wordlessly, Serperior lifted his tail off the ground and began spinning it in quick, multiple circles. A glowing green tornado formed around it, with small leaves whirling around inside the cyclone.

" _Submit,_ " he said tonelessly as he flicked his tail at me.

The whirling tornado was on me before I even had a chance to blink. The attack blew me off my feet, whipping me all over with powerful gusts as the leaves sliced and shredded my skin. I cried out in pain as I tumbled across the ground.

Every one of my nerves was screaming its displeasure. I couldn't take this agony! It was too much!

Then without warning, all was black.

* * *

The next thing I knew, I was back in my Pokeball. Strangely, though, I felt fine. It was as if I'd never battled Serperior at all. Had it all been a dream?

No, no. I could sense Mistress and the hunter in the outside world, along with a third human I'd never seen before.

"Your Ralts is all better now. Take care!" the human said cheerfully, handing my ball to Mistress.

"Thanks. Ralts, come on out!" Mistress said as she released me.

Once I had rematerialized, I stared up at the two Trainers in confusion. The third human was behind a desk. We were in some sort of spacious building.

" _What happened?_ " I asked in bewilderment.

"That Leaf Tornado knocked you out, but Hunter showed me where the Pokemon Center in Sandgem was. Nurse Joy healed you right up. Are you okay?" Mistress explained as the third human and a large, egg-shaped pink Pokemon leaned over the desk.

" _You were pretty banged up! But we healed you, so all is well now!_ " the pink Pokemon told me happily.

" _Oh...I'm fine._ " I replied, saddened by my failure.

"That's a relief." Mistress sighed as she and the hunter began walking towards the exit. I scrambled after them, thankful that Mistress was not angry with me for my disgrace.

"You can understand your Ralts?" the hunter asked curiously.

"Yeah. Can't you understand yours?" Mistress snapped. She was still annoyed at him for not telling her about his experience. I didn't blame her. I was a bit annoyed myself.

"Not to the degree you can, but then again I've barely gotten to know my Ralts so far. You see, the Ralts family is known for creating a psychic bond between them and their Trainer. This bond allows them to read the emotions of their Trainer, and allows the Trainer to better understand what they are saying." the hunter explained in a knowing tone.

Mistress was curious, despite herself.

"So you're saying that's how I can understand Ralts? Because of this psychic bond?" she summarized.

"Precisely. By the way...Since you had absolutely no chance of defeating me, I'll be lenient this one time, but normally after being defeated, you'll pay the victor 10% of your money." the hunter went on. Mistress stopped dead in her tracks.

"What?!" she demanded, turning to face him. He nodded.

"Oh, yes. It's an actual rule. Look it up if you don't believe me. Trainers have to create funds somehow. How else will you pay for food, shelter, and other necessities? Did they not teach you that in Trainers' School?"

"I...think I was sick that day…"

"Hm. In any case, there's a lot more to being a Trainer than catching Pokemon and battling other people. But I'm sure you'll learn the ropes soon enough. I have a hunch," the hunter said.

"Whatever. Stop following me, would you? Haven't you annoyed me enough today?" Mistress snorted as we reached the edge of town.

"Very well. I'm actually supposed to be headed in the opposite direction. There's a lake nearby that I'd like to visit. Goodbye, Alanna and Ralts. I hope we'll get to battle again soon." the hunter shrugged amiably as he headed back into Sandgem.

"Arrogant prick." Mistress muttered under her breath as she turned and began the walk home again.

* * *

The sun was beginning to set once we arrived at Mistress' apartment. She had been too annoyed at the hunter to bother catching another Pokemon, even though we ran into another Shinx and a black-and-white bird Pokemon.

"I'm home!" Mistress called as we entered.

It looked completely different than it had when we left. The furniture had been set up in the main room, and all but a few of the boxes were gone. Something in the kitchen smelled absolutely wonderful. My mouth started watering.

"Oh, there you are Alanna! How was it?" her mother beamed, peeking from around the corner from the kitchen. Her father exited the balcony and embraced her.

"It was mixed. I got my Pokedex and I caught a Shinx, but it won't obey me and I was tricked into a battle against an elite Trainer." Mistress pouted, crossing her arms as she flopped down onto a purple couch.

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry." her mother sympathized, coming over to hug her.

"Some Pokemon are like that at first. They just need some time to warm up to you, is all. And I have no doubt you'll win your next battle." her father nodded, patting her head.

"I hope so. What's for dinner? It smells fantastic." Mistress sighed, changing the subject. She was sure she wouldn't have to see the hunter again, and that thought made her feel better. I felt better too. Hunters were bad; I was glad we were staying away from him.

"Bean casserole. It's almost ready, so you'd better wash up." her mother answered.

We ate dinner, and Mistress even gave me a bit of the bean casserole thingy. It was hearty and flavorful, and I was sad that I couldn't have more. Normally I preferred sweet foods, but the casserole was so tasty, I was half-tempted to steal the dish and eat the rest.

Shinx sat away from the rest of us, not meeting any of our eyes. I tried to get him to tell me why he wouldn't battle again, but he swiped at me angrily each time I asked. Eventually, I gave up, and helped Mistress and her parents put away the rest of their things.

When it was bedtime, I pleaded for her to let me stay outside my Pokeball. She agreed, and I snuggled up by her feet while she read a book in bed.

Soon, I was asleep.

* * *

 **Hey, the second chapter is finally here! So far, Sinnoh hasn't been much fun for our heroines. Hopefully things'll get better soon.**

 **At the beginning of each post, I'll create a list of Alanna's Pokemon, their genders, and movesets. When a rival will be making an appearance, I'll include their stats as well. Or would you rather it be a surprise?**

 **Also, I changed the name of the story to something less generic and something I liked better. Whee.**

 **The next chapter will include: the beginning of a journey, Route 203, and a dark gate.**


	3. The Start of a Journey

Alanna (F/14) Money: $500 Badges: None

Ralts (F): Trace/Synchronize

Moves: Confusion, Growl

Shinx (M): Intimidate/Rivalry

Moves: Tackle

* * *

 _Day 2_

* * *

I woke the next morning before Mistress did. I sat up, yawned and stretched. I could hear Mistress' parents up and about in the main room, and it was bright and sunny outside. It was a perfect day to start an adventure.

" _Mistress? Wake up!_ " I whispered gently. Mistress did not stir.

" _Mistress?_ " I said louder, in case she hadn't heard me. Still, she didn't even twitch. I began to grow worried.

" _Mistress!_ " I shrieked. I grew worried as Mistress continued not to wake. Was she dead? ...No, I could see her chest rise and fall. Was she in a coma, then? I shook her arm, silently pleading for her to wake up.

To my utmost relief, her eyes opened and hazily focused on me.

"Oh...G'mornin', Ralts." she yawned, turning to look at the clock on her nightstand.

" _You wouldn't wake up. I was worried…_ " I fretted.

"Hold on," Mistress said as she put two devices in her ears. After some adjusting, she smiled at me. "There we go. What were you saying?"

" _I called your name, but you wouldn't wake up. I thought you were in a coma._ " I explained, bowing my head.

"Oh, I see. I usually take out my hearing aids before I fall asleep. I couldn't hear you at all. Sorry to worry you," Mistress said, rubbing my head comfortingly. I angled my head a bit, enjoying the feel of her fingers. I had forgotten Mistress could not hear without those strange little devices she now wore.

"I'm gonna go get dressed, then let's eat breakfast, alright?" Mistress told me as she got up.

" _Yes!_ " I agreed, excited to finally get out of this crowded city. Hopefully none of the other human cities would be as awful as Jubilife.

I waited patiently while Mistress showered and dressed. Then we sat at the table just as her mother was setting down plates of food.

"Morning, sleepyhead. How'd you sleep?" her mother asked jokingly.

"Pretty well, thanks. I was so excited for today it took me a while to fall asleep, but once I did I slept like a rock." Mistress replied cheerfully, releasing Shinx from his Pokeball.

" _Mmph,_ " was all he said as he was released. Mistress' father laid down bowls of food for us, and I happily dug in. Shinx, however, ate slowly and warily.

"I can't believe this day has come...My little girl, about to set off on an adventure...You sure you don't want to put it off for a little while?" her father sighed.

"Haha, don't worry, Dad, I'll call you guys every night. It's not like I'm leaving forever. I'll just be one quick phone call away, always." Mistress assured.

"Hah...I'm both sad and excited for you. I remember when I started my own adventure. My mother cried the day I left because she was so happy for me, and I remember being so excited to finally see what the world had to offer. You'll love it out there, Alanna. Do tell us every bit of your journey. Do you know where you're heading to first?" Mistress' mother reminisced. Mistress nodded, then swallowed the mouthful of orange juice she was drinking.

"Yeah, I did some reading last night, and the closest Gym is in a place called Oreburgh City. It'll take most of a day to get there by foot, so I won't be too far away. I should get there around nightfall," she said.

"Oh, after breakfast, let's visit the PokeMart for supplies. You'll need them," her dad said.

"Sounds good." Mistress nodded.

I did not know what a PokeMart was, but it sounded fun.

" _Do you know what a PokeMart is?_ " I asked Shinx.

" _I dunno. I think it's a place where humans buy things, but I'm not sure._ " he replied.

That certainly sounded intriguing! I wondered what kinds of things were in a PokeMart…

After breakfast, Mistress returned Shinx, who requested to remain in his ball for the time being. He didn't seem to be very comfortable around us all.

Me, Mistress, and her parents walked out into Jubilife, where we headed down many streets that all looked the same to me. Every single street had gray, identical skyscrapers, noisy cars blocking the road, and hordes of people and Pokemon walking down the sidewalk. It was an absolute nightmare. How could so many people live in such a crowded place?!

I lost track of time as we delved further into the city. I was all too glad when we stopped in front of a one-story building-a rare sight in this city-with a blue building.

"Here it is. Always look for the blue building, Alanna," Mistress' father said to her.

We entered the building, and I was immediately taken aback by how many things there were in the store. Items of various size and color were stacked in rows upon rows of shelves. How did humans have this much stuff? It was almost as overwhelming as Jubilife City itself.

I was so lost in my thoughts, I did not realize Mistress had started walking until I felt my hand be tugged along. I stumbled, then righted myself. I stared at all the merchandise until Mistress' parents led us down one particular aisle.

This isle was stocked with many bottles, each with a different color.

"You know what each of these are and what they do, right?" Mistress' father asked, pointing to a row of particular colorful bottles. Mistress nodded.

"Yep. The yellow ones, Paralyze Heals, cure paralysis. Burn Heals are the red ones, and they heal burns. The light blue ones are Ice Heals, and they cure a frozen Pokemon. The green ones are Awakenings, and they wake a sleeping Pokemon. Finally, the purple ones, Antidotes, cure poison." Mistress recited, pointing to each in turn.

"That's right. Let's get you two of each, as well as some Potions. That should be enough to start you off," Mistress' mother said as the three grabbed a handful of each bottle, as well as a few gray bottles on the other shelf.

I followed them to a counter, where the human woman behind it held some sort of device to each item. Each time she did this, a loud beep would sound. I frowned, wondering what the purpose of all this was.

"Twenty-one point five." the human chirped brightly. Mistress' mother gave the woman a couple of green pieces of paper. The woman handed her back two shiny gray circles. Mistress' mother put the circles away, and said goodbye to the human.

We made our way back to the apartment, and I was very happy to be out of the noisy, smelly city. I flopped down on the couch, and watched as Mistress put her new bottles into her backpack.

" _There were a lot of things in the PokeMart,_ " I said.

"Mm-hmm. PokeMarts are full of essential items a Trainer needs," Mistress said absently, putting more things into her bag.

" _What are you doing?_ "

"Getting ready for our trip. I just hope my bag's big enough for everything..."

Mistress continued to put things into her bulging bag. Once she was done, she was pleased that everything fit inside. She tied a blue cylindrical object on top of her bag, then experimentally put it on. She swayed for a second, but found her balance.

"Not too bad. I can deal with this," she said, nodding in satisfaction as she put her things back down.

" _What's that?_ " I asked, pointing to the cylindrical thing.

"A sleeping bag. If we have to spend the night outdoors, then I'll just snuggle up in there." Mistress explained.

" _That's handy._ " I observed politely. A bed of leaves worked just as fine, in my opinion. Maybe humans were too fragile to sleep on the ground?

"You all set? Do you have enough money?" Mistress' mother asked, coming from the balcony.

"Yeah. I do." Mistress replied quietly. She was suddenly nervous, probably about leaving home. I could understand that. I was scared when I left my mother, too.

Her father squeezed her hand.

"Come on, we'll walk you to the route. It's to the east, you said?" he asked.

"Yes, that's right." Mistress nodded.

I took one last glance at the apartment before following Mistress and her parents out the door and back into the city. We walked for a while, then thankfully I could see the beginnings of nature peeking out on the horizon. The concrete soon gave way to sweet, crispy grass, and I happily wiggled my toes in the soft undergrowth.

Finally, some greenery.

We stopped, and Mistress faced her parents. She held her head up high, and I could tell that everyone was trying to hold back tears.

"Well...this is it. The beginning of your journey." her father said huskily. Mistress nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah. Like I said, I'll call every night as soon as I get the chance. I'll call as soon as I get into Oreburgh," she said, her voice cracking at the end.

"You have everything, right? Clothes? Your phone? Extra batteries and hearing aids?" her mother fretted.

"Don't worry, those were the first things I packed." Mistress reassured, patting a pocket of her bag.

"Haha, I know you did. I just have to worry, is all. I'm your mother, of course." Mistress' mother laughed, drawing Mistress into an embrace. Her father joined in, and the three stood there for a few minutes. Reluctantly, they disengaged.

"Alright. You go and have fun, now. Tell us every bit!" Mistress' mother said, running a hand through her hair.

"Ralts, you take good care of my Alanna, okay?" Her father asked me. I stood up taller.

" _Of course!_ " I exclaimed. I would protect Mistress with all my very being! He nodded.

"Excellent. Well, Alanna, I suppose we shouldn't keep you waiting any longer."

"I'll be back as soon as I beat the first Gym." Mistress assured.

"I'm sure you'll beat it on your first try. Goodbye, dear," her mother said.

"Bye Mom, bye Dad." Mistress smiled before slowly turning around.

"Good luck!" her father shouted as we started walking down the path.

"Thanks! I'll see you soon!" Mistress called.

* * *

We were silent for a while as we walked down the dusty dirt path. The terrain here was flatter, with a few trees here and there. Small ponds littered the landscape, and I could faintly see water-type Pokemon swimming in the water.

"This place is kinda pretty. I'd certainly love to have a picnic by the water's edge here sometime." Mistress observed as we passed yet more ponds.

" _That'd be fun. And afterward we could go swimming_!" I agreed.

"Yes, of course. Hm...what am I going to do about Shinx?" Mistress sighed, looking down at Shinx's Pokeball on her belt.

" _Maybe we could show him how much fun battling is?_ " I suggested. I certainly had enjoyed my first battle yesterday. At least, until I had gotten knocked out.

"That's a thought. I might just do that." Mistress nodded thoughtfully.

We walked onward, pausing once to eat some lunch. At around three o'clock, we ran into two small humans coming from the opposite direction.

The taller one was shorter than Mistress, and had long brown hair, a pink shirt, and a purple skirt. The shorter human had short dark brown hair, a blue hat, a white T-shirt, and blue shorts.

"Oh! I wasn't expecting to run into anyone on here." Mistress said as we approached the two.

"Hi! Are you a Trainer too?" the taller female asked cheerfully.

"Yeah. Are you?" Mistress nodded.

"Yep! I'm Madeline, and this is my younger brother, Michael. We're on our way to Jubilife City." the girl explained.

"It's about a couple hours away. Just keep following the path. I'm Alanna, and this is my partner, Ralts." Mistress introduced.

" _Hello!_ " I beamed.

"It's so cool" the Michael-human exclaimed, staring at me in wonder.

"Nice to meet you! Hey, would you like to battle? When two Trainers' eyes meet, they must battle, after all!" the Madeline-human asked, pulling out a Pokeball.

"Is that so? I'd love to battle. One-against-one?" Mistress said as the two females put some distance in between them.

"Sounds good! You can go first." the Madeline-human offered.

"Alright. Ralts, go!" Mistress shouted. I eagerly raced onto the battlefield.

Mistress released Shinx, who looked panic-stricken at the sight in front of him.

 _"I'm not battling!_ " he insisted.

"Shinx, I want you to just sit back and watch, okay? You won't have to battle." Mistress told him. Shinx paused, then warily sat down.

" _Alright,_ " he agreed suspiciously.

"Oh, you have a Shinx? That's so cool! Go, Psyduck!" the Madeline-human giggled as she sent out a small, yellow Pokemon.

" _Eh…?_ " Psyduck asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Psyduck, huh?" Mistress muttered as she pulled out her Pokedex.

" **Psyduck, the Duck Pokemon. Overwhelmed by enigmatic abilities, it suffers a constant headache. It sometimes uses mysterious powers.** " Mistress' Pokedex chirped.

"Hm, neat. Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

" _Okay!_ " I beamed as I caught the Psyduck in my psychic grasp. It was somewhat difficult in lifting her up into the air, but I managed to hold on until I was ready to drop her.

" _Ah! Put me down! Put me down!_ " Psyduck shrieked, struggling in vain to break free of my hold.

I dropped Psyduck. She fell down to ground with a thud.

"Oh! Psyduck, are you okay?" our foe fretted.

" _Maybe? I don't know. I have such an awful headache…_ " Psyduck replied, getting up and dusting herself off.

"Okay. Psyduck, Water Gun!" the Madeline-human shouted.

Psyduck spat out a powerful jet of water from her bill. The blast was strong, but I managed to hold my ground. I endured the attack, and thankfully the stream ended after a few seconds.

"You alright, Ralts?" Mistress asked.

" _*cough* Yes, Mistress *cough*,_ " I replied, spitting out water.

"Good. Confusion, once more!" Mistress shouted.

"Dodge it!" the Madeline-human ordered.

Psyduck jumped away from the area I had been concentrating my power on.

"Scratch!" her human went on.

Psyduck raced towards me, holding a hand up in the air. I was unable to get away in time, and I cried out as I was struck over and over again. I fell to the ground, nursing my wounds. That Scratch had hurt much worse than the Water Gun had.

"Come on, Ralts, I know you can do it! Confusion!" Mistress encouraged.

I forced myself to get up, and this time I easily caught Psyduck in my grasp. One more, I lifted her high off the ground, then dropped her.

"Scratch, once again!" the Madeline-human commanded.

"Growl" Mistress countered as Psyduck stumbled towards me. She looked very tired, and she was stumbling more than running.

I Growled loudly, causing my foe to flinch right as she bore down upon me. Her blows were much weaker this time. They still hurt, but I managed to remain standing.

" _Ah...Need a breather…_ " Psyduck wheezed, doubling over.

"Confusion!" Mistress shouted.

When I dropped Psyduck, she didn't get back up again.

"Wahhh! Psyduck!" the Madeline-human wailed, running to embrace her Pokemon.

" _I'm fine….Just tired...this headache…._ " Psyduck reassured in between breaths.

"That was a good fight. Do you need a Potion?" Mistress asked as she walked over to the other humans. The Madeline-human looked up.

"No, thanks. I have plenty. Gosh, your Ralts is strong!" she marveled, pulling out a gray bottle and spraying something all over Psyduck's wounds. To my astonishment, wherever the spray touched, the wounds went away instantly.

"I wanna battle!" the Michael-human exclaimed, tugging at his sister's shirt. She looked up at Mistress as she returned Psyduck.

"Would you mind battling my brother next? He's only seven, so he can't have his own Pokemon just yet, but he likes to practice." she asked.

"I don't mind. Ralts, do you?" Mistress shrugged.

" _I can still fight some more,_ " I said. I liked battling, and was eager for another challenge.

"Alright. You can go first this time, Michael," Mistress said to the smaller human. He beamed.

"Yay! Thank you!"

"Would you like to battle with Zubat or Kricketot?" the Madeline-human asked as she held two Pokeballs to her brother.

"Kricketot," the Michael-human said instantly. The Madeline-human handed him a Pokeball.

"I may be young, but I've watched my sister battle for a while! Don't underestimate me! Go, Kricketot!" the Michael-human warned as he released a red-and-yellow Pokemon with two antenna.

"So that's a Kricketot, huh?" Mistress observed as she pulled out her Pokedex again.

" **Kricketot, the Cricket Pokemon. Its legs are short. Whenever it stumbles, its stiff antennae clack with a xylophone-like sound.** " it informed.

"Kricketot, Growl!" the Michael-human commanded.

" _Yes._ " Kricketot agreed as he let out a piercing wail.

I flinched at the ferocity coming from the smaller Pokemon. Kricketot was small, but he was certainly not helpless!

"Shake it off, Ralts! Confusion!" Mistress ordered. I did as she bade, turning my trepidation into resolve. I couldn't let her down, no matter what!

I telekinetically lifted Kricketot, holding on tight despite its fervent struggles. I then slammed it down onto the ground.

" _OW!_ " Kricketot yelled as he collided with the hard ground.

"Again!" Mistress commanded.

"Tell Kricketot to dodge." the Madeline-human advised.

"Right! Dodge it!" her brother shouted.

Kricketot barely managed to escape my grasp, and his Trainer ordered him to use an attack called Bide. Kricketot's body became outlined in white, and he braced himself for an attack.

"Growl, then Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

I shouted as loud as I could, but my Growl did not seem to affect the glowing Kricketot. Nevertheless, I lifted Kricketot, then threw him down to the ground. Still he did not flinch.

"What's going on…?" Mistress faltered.

"Fire!" the Michael-human shrieked, pointing at me.

Kricketot opened his mouth, then a giant white beam zoomed right for me.

"Dodgeitdodgeitdodgeitdodgeit!" Mistress screamed.

I didn't need to be told twice. I _dove_ out of the way, my heart nearly pounding right out of my chest. The beam whizzed safely past me.

"That was supposed to hit!" the Michael-human protested, stamping his foot.

"Confusion!" Mistress ordered swiftly.

I got over my fright, then did as she asked. Kricketot didn't move.

"Awww…." the Michael-human pouted as his sister quickly healed Kricketot.

"That was close. What was that attack you used?" Mistress breathed a sigh of relief as she came over again.

"That was Bide. The Pokemon endures attacks for a while, then shoots a beam double the amount of damage it took back at the opponent." the Madeline-human explained as she returned Kricketot. She rummaged around in her purse, then handed Mistress a couple pieces of green paper.

"Here, $40," she said. Mistress looked at her in confusion.

"Why are you offering me that?" she asked.

"The loser of a battle always pays 10% of his or her money to the victor. $20 from me, and $20 for your battle against my brother, Please, take it. I have more." the other Trainer insisted.

Mistress hesitated, then reluctantly took the money.

"If you say so. I really enjoyed our battles. They were fun."

"I did too!" the Madeline-human beamed.

"Me too! I'll beat you next time!" her brother declared. The girls laughed.

"We should get going. It was nice meeting you, Alanna. See you again soon!" the Madeline-human waved as she and her brother began heading towards Jubilife.

"Bye-bye!" the Michael-human waved.

"Goodbye!" " _Bye-bye!_ " Mistress and I called before we continued on our own trek.

"Did you see all of that, Shinx?" Mistress asked Shinx, who had not said a word throughout the entire thing.

" _I saw,_ " he said quietly.

"We had a lot of fun battling Madeline and Michael. You should join us next time." Mistress suggested.

" _Maybe,_ " Shinx said, sounding unconvinced. Mistress returned him to his Pokeball.

* * *

As the afternoon turned into evening, we came across a small, round, furry brown Pokemon with big teeth that was coming out of a pond. In the distance, a small cave loomed.

" **Bidoof, the Plump Mouse Pokemon. A comparison revealed that Bidoof's front teeth grow at the same rate as Rattata's.** " Mistress' Pokedex explained when she pulled it out.

"Ralts, use Confusion, would you? I'd like to have that Bidoof." Mistress requested.

" _Of course_!" I agreed, running over towards the Bidoof.

" _Who are you?_ " he inquired as I approached.

" _I'm Ralts! My Mistress wants to catch you._ " I told it brightly.

" _Oh? Very well, then. Let's see what you're made of_!" he challenged, getting into a fighting position.

I happily lifted Bidoof into the air with my Confusion. He crashed awkwardly onto the ground. He painfully got up, and with a panicked look he turned and dove into the water.

" _Too strong! Too strong!_ " he wailed as he swam away.

"Wait! Ugh…" Mistress faltered as we helplessly watched the Bidoof swim away.

"Great." she muttered.

" _Don't be sad, Mistress. We'll catch the next one!_ " I comforted optimistically. Mistress sighed.

"I hope so. I guess we should move on," she said as she reluctantly turned away and began walking down the path.

Soon, we reached the entrance of the cave. I peered inside, and was glad to see that it was lit up by things Mistress called 'lanterns'.

"Okay, so this is Oreburgh Gate. The city is right on the other side of this cave. We should get there in a couple hours or so," Mistress said, looking at a sign near the entrance.

I was glad we were almost there. We'd been walking for hours; my feet were tired!

"It's the home stretch, Ralts. We can do it," Mistress said confidently as she adjusted the straps on her backpack.

" _Yes._ " I agreed as we stepped into the deep, dark cave.

It was quiet inside the cave, which was more like a tunnel. The tunnel led straight east, but there was many other paths leading in the other directions. One path leading north was blocked off with yellow barriers.

"Apparently this place used to be an old mine, but they quit once they realized they were disturbing the Pokemon who lived here. At least, that's what I read last night." Mistress observed as we walked along.

I smiled, grateful to the humans who ceased their destruction of the homes of Pokemon.

We didn't see very many Pokemon in Oreburgh Gate. We saw the shadows of a couple, but they retreated deeper into the cave before we could take a closer look. After a while, I could hear a faint sobbing sound coming from up ahead.

" _Do you hear that, Mistress?_ " I asked.

"...No. Why? What do you hear?" she responded after a second.

" _It sounds like...crying._ " I discerned.

We quickened our pace, and gradually came to a small human boy curled up against the wall, crying loudly.

"Hey, are you okay?" Mistress asked concernedly, taking a step closer. The boy jumped with fright and looked up at us.

"O-oh, other people! Thank the Original One!" he wailed.

"What's wrong?" Mistress inquired, helping him up.

"I-I need to get to Oreburgh, b-b-but it's so dark in here! I can barely see a thing!" he shivered.

"What about the lanterns?" Mistress gestured to the faint lights along the walls.

"Th-they're not strong enough t-t-to keep a-away all the monsters in the d-dark…" the boy sniffled. Mistress paused, then grasped the boy's hand.

"We're on our way to Oreburgh ourself. I'm Alanna, and this is my partner, Ralts. Come with us. We'll protect you." she offered. The boy stared up at her.

"I-Im Curtis. Do you...do you really mean that?" he asked hesitantly. Mistress nodded and smiled reassuringly.

"Of course! Come on, I think we're almost at the end." Mistress said encouragingly. The Curtis-human hesitated, but he began shuffling along after her.

It was rather slow going, as the terrified boy flinched at every sound and would often seize up in fright. Mistress and I had to repeatedly encourage him to keep moving.

At one point, a Pokemon screeched loudly from the high ceiling. The Curtis-human was so startled he turned almost white.

"Shinx, protect me!" the Curtis-human wailed, sending out a Shinx.

" _Of course_!" his Shinx declared, gazing protectively around the tunnel.

"It was just a Zubat. Nothing to be afraid of. Look, I can see a light up ahead." Mistress pointed. I looked, and indeed there was a small speck of light some distance ahead.

"AWESOME!" the Curtis-human exclaimed, breaking into a sprint.

"Wait!" me, Mistress, and Shinx yelled as we raced after him.

We ran until we reached the end of the tunnel. Once we were back out into the light, we paused, panting and catching our breaths. All four of us were blinking rapidly, our eyes adjusting to the sudden change in light.

"Hah...finally….I'm outta that cave…" the Curtis-human wheezed, his hands on his knees.

"Thanks for...helping me through all that. I don't think I would have ever made it out on my own," he said, turning to face us as he recalled Shinx.

"I couldn't just leave you there. ...So, this is Oreburgh City, huh?" Mistress replied, facing the city before us.

I looked, and marveled at the flat, earthy town below. The town was the opposite of Jubilife City. For one, most of the buildings were 1-2 stories high. A few were higher, but none reached as high as the sky. There was enough room on both the dirt roads and sidewalks for people to have plenty of personal space. I could see the tops of many trees poking up between the buildings. The air smelled clean and fresh, and there was a huge mountain range in the distance, illuminated by the silver light of the moon.

I loved it.

"Pretty cool, huh? Over there is the mine, and right next to it is the museum," the Curtis-human said, pointing to a cave to the east and then a large building nearby.

"Oh, cool. Say, where's the Pokemon Center and the Gym?" Mistress asked as we stared down at the town.

"There and there," the Curtis-human said, pointing to a building with a red roof near the center of the town and then a squarish building near the mine.

"Sweet. Thanks. You gonna be okay from here?" Mistress asked. He nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks again for what you did. I'll never forget it. I'll see you around!" he said as he walked down into town.

We made our way to the Pokemon Center, marveling at the sights. There was a store that sold precious gems found in the mine, a place that sold pickaxes, and even a store that sold different types of Pokeballs! Mistress bought herself a Dusk Ball as a souvenir.

We checked into the Pokemon Center To my astonishment, the human and Pokemon behind the counter were the same ones from Sandgem Town!

" _How did they get here so fast?_ " I marveled.

"Hm?" Mistress inquired.

" _The human and Pokemon! They were in Sandgem!_ " I exclaimed.

"Oh, that. They're not the same. Nurse Joy has a bunch of cousins who look exactly alike. Same with Chansey." she explained.

 _"Oh…_ " I said, very confused by this explanation.

We walked upstairs to our room. Mistress set her bags down on a bed.

"Ah, it feels good to sit down. My feet and back are killing me." she sighed, laying down. I joined her on the bed, happy to be off my feet as well. We'd done a lot of walking today. My feet were awfully sore.

She pulled out her phone, and started tapping some of the buttons on it. Then, strangely, she put the phone to her ear.

"Hey Mom, it's me. I just got into Oreburgh and I'm at the Pokemon Center….Yeah I'm fine. Ralts and Shinx are too….It's pretty cool, actually. It's a mining town. I haven't seen much of it yet, but I plan on it tomorrow…..No, I was just about to head out to grab some," she said.

She spoke to the phone for a bit more, then put it away.

" _What did you do_?" I inquired, very confused but what I had just seen.

"I spoke to my parents. A phone can let two people talk to each other no matter the distance." Mistress explained. My eyes widened. That was _amazing_!

We rested for a bit, then we headed outside to grab some food. There was a small, cozy little restaurant right across from the Pokemon Center called the Jewel. Mistress released Shinx, and ordered herself a pizza and small salad while we ate at her feet.

"How's your food?" Mistress asked us as we ate.

" _Delicious!" "Fine,_ " Shinx and I said.

"That's good. It's too late to challenge the Gym tonight, so we'll do it tomorrow as soon as we can. *yawn*...I'm getting tired. Too much walking for one day." Mistress yawned.

She finished up her food, paid, and we headed back to our room.

It wasn't quite time for bed, but Mistress and I were exhausted from our long day of walking. She got ready for bed while Shinx sat by himself in the corner.

When she came out, she looked thoughtfully at us both.

"I've been thinking...You two are going to have to be my second pair of ears, okay? I take out my hearing aids when I'm asleep or bathing. If I'm asleep and something happens, you're going to need to shake me awake. If I'm in the shower, just flick the lights. Got it?" she instructed.

" _Of course!_ " I exclaimed at once.

" _I guess._ " Shinx mumbled. Mistress nodded.

"Good. Well, I'm off to bed. You two can stay up if you want, but remain in this room and don't be too loud, okay? I won't be able to hear it, but the other residents might," she said as she climbed into bed.

I yawned.

" _I'm going to bed too. Goodnight, Mistress and Shinx,_ " I said as I laid down on the bed next to Mistress'

I was asleep soon after I closed my eyes.

* * *

 **And so, our journey begins! What adventures await our heroines next?!**

 **The next post shall include: a dark mine, a tense Gym battle, and a museum.**


	4. A Rocky Battle

Alanna (F/14): Money: $518 Badges: None

Ralts (F): Trace/Synchronize

Moves: Growl, Confusion

Shinx (M): Intimidate/Rivalry

Moves: Tackle

* * *

 _Day 3_

* * *

I woke early the next morning as a stray sunbeam shone right in my face. I opened my eyes, then squinted in the bright morning light. I rolled away from the sunbeam, then looked around the room. Mistress was still asleep, and so was Shinx, who was curled up in the corner.

I went over to the window and looked outside. By the position of the sun, I'd say it was about 9 in the morning. I did not know how long humans slept, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to let Mistress know the time.

I walked over to Mistress, and gently shook her arm. She stirred, then her eyes fluttered open.

"Mmm?" she mumbled.

I shook her arm some more, and her eyes came all the way open. She hazily saw me, then with a yawn reached over and grabbed her hearing aids from the nightstand.

"Yeah?" she yawned.

" _It's nine in the morning,_ " I said helpfully.

"It is? Oh, *yawn*, thanks Ralts." Mistress replied as she took off her covers and sat up, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

"Ah, damn, my shoulders are _killing_ me!" she winced, moving her shoulders.

She rummaged through her backpack until she found her clothes and toiletries. She took out her hearing aids once more before heading into the bathroom.

"If anything happens just flick the light switch!" she yelled loudly from inside the bathroom.

I heard her turn on the shower, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Shinx stir as well. He yawned and stretched before going over to wash himself in the patch of sunlight on the bed I slept on.

" _Good morning, Shinx!_ " I chirped brightly. Shinx paused in his washing.

" _Hi,_ " he said warily.

" _Ready for another exciting day?_ " I beamed.

" _No, not really. Leave me alone._ " he sulked.

He refused to talk to me after that, so I settled with watching the people and Pokemon down below from the window.

Eventually, Mistress returned from the bathroom, and we headed back to the Jewel for breakfast. It was quite busy, but thankfully there were still a few open tables. Mistress ordered herself some pancakes and fruit while Shinx and I ate some citrus-flavored Pokemon food, which I found quite enjoyable.

As we ate, two funny-looking human men with aqua hair and identical clothes sat down at the table next to us. They spoke in hushed whispers, but I was close enough to accidentally hear them.

"We gotta do something to impress the bosses," one was saying to the other.

"Yeah, yeah. But what?" the other agreed.

"Hmm...I got it! Isn't that Pokemon evolution professor-guy doing a presentation in Jubilife tomorrow?"

"Ohhh, I see where you're going with this! Let's do it!" the second human agreed.

Then they noticed me watching them.

"What are you looking at?" the first one demanded.

"Waitress, can we get another table please?" the second one hailed a waitress, who accommodated their odd request.

I was very confused. Why did they want another table? From what I could see, theirs looked just fine.

Humans were so strange.

After breakfast, Mistress recalled Shinx and we began to make our way down to the Gym. She and I were both nervous in anticipation of the fight. Mistress had warned me the Gym Leader would be tough. I hoped vehemently that I would be able to pull through. I couldn't bear to let her down!

We were delayed for a solid fifteen minutes by a train, but we arrived at the Gym at around ten. The Gym was a one-story building painted gray with brown trimming. There was a Pokeball design above the entrance. Oddly, though, the doors wouldn't open.

"Locked." Mistress frowned. She turned and faced the street, looking around as if the Gym Leader would magically arrive.

"Are you looking for Roark?" a human male who was tidying up the lawn adjacent to us asked.

"Is he the Gym Leader?" Mistress asked back.

"Yes. He's working right now, down in the mines. Being a Gym Leader isn't his only job." the man answered.

Mistress groaned.

"Do you know when he'll be free?" she inquired.

"He gets off at noon for lunch. You might try him then, otherwise you'll have to wait until five. He'll be the tall guy in gray with burgundy hair." the man advised.

"I hope I don't have to wait that long. Thanks." Mistress nodded as the human returned to his work.

"What are we supposed to do for two hours, Ralts? Hm. I guess we could visit the museum. That might kill some time." Mistress sighed.

" _That sounds fun,_ " I said. It would definitely be interesting to see the history of humans.

So, we made our way over to the museum. It was a _huge_ tan building with blue stripes along the edges. Pictures of rock-like Pokemon I didn't recognize adorned banners that hung from the streetlights.

"Wow, the mining museum is a lot bigger than I thought it'd be." Mistress whistled as we marveled the gigantic building.

We entered the museum, and were immediately taken aback by the skeleton of some monstrous Pokemon hanging from the ceiling. The smallest bone was easily five times my size. I felt so small compared to this beast of a skeleton. I was just a drop of water in a lake. Insignificant. Tiny.

Well, just because I was small didn't mean I couldn't make a difference in this world.

Mistress led me to a counter in the center of the floor.

"Hi, I'd like one ticket, please," she said.

I peeked around the counter and at the displays behind it while Mistress talked with the receptionist.

I could see cases filled with large chunks of black stone, and a few odd tools I couldn't discern the use for. One worn-down tool looked like a tree with only two perpendicular branches. Both these "branches" were very sharp, and pointed. Whatever could that be used for?

"Come on, Ralts." Mistress beckoned as she walked into the museum proper.

"The first floor is the history of mining and coal, the second floor is gemstones and other treasures, and on the third floor they're doing a special exhibit on archaeology." she explained as we looked at the display cases.

"Oh, neat. These are coal samples from different regions. Here's one from Sinnoh, one from Johto...even one from Hoenn. Cool." she pointed.

" _What is archaeology, and coal?_ " I asked as I looked at the black rocks on display.

"Archaeology is the study of prehistoric humans and Pokemon. Archaeologists find fossils of bones, or pieces of pottery from the ancient past. As for coal, it's plant matter that's been subject to high pressure and used as fuel." Mistress explained, gesturing to the black rocks.

I stared hard at the rocks, confused. I did not know much about the world, but I was pretty sure that plants weren't rocks, high pressure or no. Mistress might need some help.

Over to the left of the display cases was a slab of coal on a small pedestal surrounded by a purple rope. Some other humans and a few Pokemon were admiring the hunk of coal.

"Whoa, that thing's huge!" Mistress exclaimed as we came over to the slab.

"It was found over in Mt. Coronet!" a human child beamed up at Mistress.

"Where's that at?" Mistress asked.

"In the middle of the region, silly! You can see it from here, in Oreburgh!" the child laughed.

Oh, she was talking about the mountain range in the distance. This piece of coal came from there? Neat.

The rest of the first floor held more displays on the tools humans and Pokemon used in the past to mine objects from rock walls. Archaic pickaxes, lanterns, and carts adorned the halls. It was pretty fascinating, getting to see the kinds of things that were used in the past. Even then, humans were ingenious creatures.

The second floor showcased the various items that were found by miners. Mistress and I ogled over large, colorful spheres that came in red, green, blue, rainbow, and transparent. There were also colorful Shards, clay, stones used in evolution—I had no idea such stones held so much power—gems, and even fossils of ancient Pokemon!

The second floor also boasted a facility that claimed to actually _revive_ fossils. I shook my head in amusement, not believing the silly humans' claims. Mistress was awestruck, but I wasn't as easily fooled. Everyone knew that once you were dead, there was no return. Really, Mistress should have known better.

There was a place called a souvenir shop, and Mistress bought herself a tiny little Red Sphere that was as big as her thumb's fingernail.

The third floor, however, was doing an exhibit on fossils that had been dug up. The skeletons of various Pokemon were strung up all along the walls and ceiling.

"I'm sure everyone saw the Wailord skeleton down on the ground floor." the exhibit's guide laughed merrily.

I liked the fossil exhibit very much. I'd no idea Pokemon were so diverse, and some were similar to the structure of humans. One display compared the skeleton of an adult human to that of an adult Infernape, whose skeleton was eerily similar to the human's.

* * *

Eventually, it was noon. We were pretty much finished with the rest of the museum anyway, so we decided to head over to the mine entrance and see if we could find the Gym Leader.

We made it just in time; many tired humans and Pokemon were emerging from a cavern entrance. They were drenched in sweat and appeared relieved to be out in the sun again.

Most of them wore the same outfit, a green one-piece with a yellow hat, but a human with gray clothes and a red hat came out of the mine as well. That human had burgundy hair. The Gym Leader!

He looked as tired as the rest, but there was nothing to indicate his high authority as Gym Leader. No symbols of wealth and status, no nothing. He just looked...ordinary.

How strange.

Mistress was suddenly nervous, but she steeled herself and boldly walked up to the Gym Leader.

"Excuse me, sir, are you Roark?" she asked, her voice cracking at the end. The man looked down and smiled.

"Sure am! Are you a Trainer looking to battle me?" he asked kindly.

"Yes sir, if you have the time." Mistress nodded.

"Sure! I could use a break from the mines. Do you know where the Gym is?"

Mistress nodded once more.

"Excellent! Let's head on over there." Roark-human suggested as he led us back to the Gym.

"Thanks for taking the time to let me challenge you. I'm Alanna, and this is Ralts," Mistress said gratefully.

"No prob! You already know me as Roark. I only just recently became a Gym, Leader, so you won't find much of a challenge in me, I'm afraid." Roark-human laughed.

"I only just became a Trainer a couple days ago, so I'm not _that_ strong yet. You'll probably beat me." Mistress shrugged.

"Haha, I guess we'll have to see then!" Roark-human laughed again.

We reached the Gym, and Roark-human unlocked the door. Inside was a _huge_ dusty battlefield, with rocks and boulders strewn haphazardly all around the area. Mistress whistled as I stared in awe. On the other side of the room was a door, and to the right of the field were rows of raised seats for an audience to view the battle.

The door on the other side opened, and three humans entered. Two were children even younger than Mistress, and the other was an older man.

"Usually I use three Pokemon, but my Onix caught a cold recently and isn't feeling well. So I'll only have to use two Pokemon. But before you battle me, you'll have to battle my students in order to prove your worth," Roark-human said.

"Really? Okay. Sure, I can do that." Mistress nodded.

The three newcomers faced us at the opposite end of the battlefield.

"My name is Jonathon! I've been studying rock-type Pokemon under Mister Roark for two whole weeks! You don't stand a chance!" the first human bragged.

"Um, hi...I'm Darius…" the second child trembled, shaking at the sight of us.

"My name is Rob. I'll be the referee." the adult human introduced as he stood to the right of the field. He held a red flag in his right hand and a green flag in his left.

"My name's Alanna! I'm going to beat you two, and then I'm going to defeat your leader! Go, Ralts!" Mistress shouted enthusiastically. I eagerly raced out onto the field. Jonathon-human stepped up to the field.

"In your dreams! Geodude, I choose you!" he shouted, sending out what looked to be a floating rock with two arms.

"Oh, there are Geodudes here too? Hm, I wonder what my Pokedex has to say on them." Mistress mused.

" **Geodude, the Rock Pokemon. At rest, it looks just like a rock. Carelessly stepping on it will make it swing its fists angrily."** her Pokedex chirped.

Mistress put it away, and released Shinx.

"Just sit back and watch again, okay Shinx?" she requested.

" _Again? Fine._ " Shinx sighed grumpily as he sat down.

"The challenger may have the first move," Jonathon-human smirked, arrogantly putting his hands on his hips as he turned his nose up in the air.

"I'm gonna wipe that smug smirk right off your face, kid. Ralts, Growl!" Mistress commanded.

Eagerly, I sent out a piercing shriek that made Geodude flinch.

"Not, bad, not bad. But how will you like this?! Geodude, Defense Curl!" Jonathon-human shouted.

" _Sure, whatever_ ," Geodude said in a bored tone as he curled himself up into a ball.

I waited, but that was it. Nothing else happened.

"Uh...Confusion?" Mistress faltered, just as confused as I was.

I easily picked up Geodude, lifted him high into the air, then made him slam into the ground.

" _Owowowowowow_!" he wailed as he got to his feet. Er, began levitating again.

"You're gonna pay for that! Tackle!" Jonathon-human stormed.

" _On it!_ " Geodude agreed as he rushed towards me. He was so intent on reaching me he smashed right through a boulder without even flinching.

I panicked at the sight, and my legs locked up. I cried out as Geodude slammed into me with full force. I felt the breath be knocked out of me, and I landed firmly on my back. I lay there for a moment, seeing stars.

"Ralts, are you okay?" Mistress fretted.

I got back to my feet, determined not to fail her.

" _Yeah...yeah,_ " I said as the pain began to fade.

"Oh, good. Confusion, again!" she commanded.

It took me a second longer to focus my energy, but Geodude was unable to get out of the way in time. Once again I slammed him down to the ground.

"Stop that! Geodude, Tackle!" Jonathon-human pouted, stamping his foot.

" _Right!_ " Geodude nodded as he charged at me yet again.

"Growl!" Mistress shouted.

My Growl didn't stop Geodude, but it did make him lose most of his force when he reached me. His Tackle still hurt, but like with Madeline-human's Psyduck, I remained standing.

"Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

"Dodge it!" Jonathon-human yelled.

Geodude was too slow, however, and the next time I made him crash to the ground, he didn't get back up again.

"Geodude is unable to continue! Alanna is the victor!" Rob-human intoned, waving his green flag at us.

"Hmph! Don't get cocky! Mister Roark is much stronger than me!" Jonathon-human pouted as he recalled Geodude. He stomped over to us and handed Mistress $17.

"Oh, good, an actual challenge." Mistress taunted. Jonathon-human huffed, turned on his feet, and left the room. Shinx didn't say a word.

The Darius-human nervously stepped up to the battlefield. His knees were trembling, and he looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here.

"You ready?" Roark called.

"Ralts, you good?" Mistress asked. I nodded. I could fight some more. I'd have to be more careful, but I could manage.

"Yeah!" Mistress called back.

"Um, the ch-challenger can go f-first…" Darius-human stuttered as he released another Geodude.

"Sounds good. Ralts, Confusion." Mistress nodded.

"Defense Curl!" Darius-human responded.

" _Okay!_ " Geodude said as he curled himself up in a ball.

This, however, had no effect on my Confusion. I caught him, and just like before I slammed him down to the floor.

"What?! Why didn't that work?" Darius-human whined.

"Defense Curl only protects against physical moves like Pound or Scratch," Roark-human said helpfully.

"Oh...Uh, Tackle!" Darius-human ordered.

" _Got it._ " Geodude nodded as he rammed right into me. For the second time that day I felt the wind be knocked right out of my lungs. This Geodude was weaker than the last, but boy he still had quite a punch.

I staggered back a few steps, seeing black at the edges of my vision. I wasn't sure if this was from the lack of oxygen, or the fact that I was starting to feel very tired.

Finally I could breathe again, and some of the black disappeared. I'd have to be very, very careful from now on. I couldn't take much more of this. My only consolation was that Geodude was tired too. He was panting hard.

"Power through it, Ralts! Confusion!" Mistress encouraged.

" _Yes...Mistress…_ " I wheezed, struggling to summon the energy I needed.

"What should I do? What should I do? Um...Mud Sport!" Darius-human ordered.

Geodude began scooping up clods of dirt from the ground and threw them into the air. Dirt rained over he and I, but it had no effect on me save getting me dirty. Shinx, however, hid behind Mistress' bag in an effort to shield himself.

"There! Now your electric-type moves will be weakened!" Darius-human beamed, a bright smile lighting up his face.

"Um...Ralts doesn't know any electric-type moves…" Mistress said awkwardly as I finally managed to catch and lift Geodude.

"What? Oh…" I felt bad for Darius-human. He slumped his shoulders in defeat, and didn't say a word when Geodude failed to stand after I dropped him.

"Geodude is unable to battle! Alanna is the victor!" Rob-human announced, waving his green flag.

Wordlessly, Darius-human shuffled over to us and handed Mistress a crumpled $10.

"Don't give up, okay? Keep training under Mister Roark, and I'm sure you'll improve," Mistress said encouragingly to him. He looked up at her.

"You...you really think so?" he asked hesitatingly.

"I know so." Mistress smiled. He paused, then smiled.

"Thanks. Next time you see me, I'm going to beat everybody! I'll be stronger than even Jonathon!"

"I look forward to it." Mistress nodded as he ran off.

"Good job on defeating Jonathon and Darius. Now are you ready to take on me, the Gym Leader?" Roark-human asked, taking Darius-human's place on the battlefield.

Mistress took out a Potion, and began spraying it all over me. The medicine felt wonderful on my scrapes and bruises, and in no time at all I felt refreshed and ready to fight.

"You bet. Bring it." Mistress grinned wickedly as I returned to her side.

"Both sides will use two Pokemon each. The battle will end when both Pokemon are unable to fight. The challenger may switch out her Pokemon and have the first move," Rob-human said formally.

"Go, Shinx!" Mistress shouted. Both me and Shinx looked at her in confusion. Why was Shinx being sent out?

I had no choice but to retreat back to Mistress' side while Shinx shuffled over onto the field, looking like he was walking to his execution.

"Geodude, go!" Roark-human called, sending out a Geodude.

" _You're going down, punk,_ " he said menacingly to Shinx, who cowered.

"Shinx, Tackle!" Mistress commanded. But Shinx was too afraid of Geodude to move.

"Not again…" she muttered.

"Geodude, Mud Sport!" Roark-human commanded. Geodude flung handfuls of dirt into the air, where they fell unceremoniously all over the two battling Pokemon.

"Tackle!" Mistress said forcefully. Shinx continued to cower, shaking his head in a vehement 'no'.

"Shinx!" she snapped.

"Rollout!" Roark-human shouted.

" _With pleasure_ ," Geodude said wickedly as he curled himself up into a ball. The ball raced over to Shinx, where it proceeded to knock him straight into the air.

" _Ah!_ " Shinx cried as he was struck. He landed with a thud on the ground. Geodude took this opportunity to trample Shinx, still using Rollout.

" _Quit it!_ " Shinx bellowed, snarling and panting. He got up and Tackled Geodude, who had finally ceased using Rollout.

Geodude looked startled, but otherwise unhurt.

"Tackle again!" Mistress encouraged. Shinx obeyed for once, ramming into Geodude with all his might. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to do a whole lot.

Shinx continued Tackling Geodude, who stood there like a rock and took all of the blows, looking rather bored.

"Shinx, stop, it's not your turn!" Mistress demanded. Shinx did not listen.

"Rollout!" Roark-human commanded.

Before Shinx could react, Geodude had curled himself up into a ball and sent him careening straight into a boulder. I winced at the crash.

When the dust had settled, Shinx was revealed to be unconscious.

"Shinx is unable to battle!" Rob-human announced, waving his red flag.

"Well, that was embarrassing. I was hoping he'd come around for this fight." Mistress sighed as she withdrew Shinx. She looked over at me.

"All up to you, Ralts," she said.

" _On it!_ " I exclaimed as I raced out onto the battlefield.

"Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

"Dodge it!" Roark-human shouted.

Geodude was too slow to get out of my psychic net in time, and I dashed him against a boulder, intent on making up for Shinx's loss.

" _Ah...That actually hurt._ " Geodude wheezed, picking himself up.

"You okay Geodude? ...Good. Rollout!" Roark-human commanded.

Just as before, Geodude curled himself up into a ball and began hurtling towards me.

"Growl." Mistress demanded.

I did, and Geodude faltered right before he hit me. It hurt like the dickens, but I remained standing.

"Confusion." Mistress requested.

I easily picked up the faltering Geodude and slammed him back down on the ground.

It took him a long time to get up, but with much resolve Geodude did it.

"Rock Polish!" Roark-human commanded.

Geodude's body glowed an opaque white, then the glow vanished, leaving Geodude shiny and sparkling.

"What did he…? Never mind. Confusion, Ralts!" Mistress ordered.

"Dodge it!" Roark-human grinned.

To my astonishment, Geodude easily evaded my psychic grasp. This was a complete change. That Rock Polish must have made him speedier or something.

"Rollout!" Roark-human laughed.

Quick as a flash, Geodude was barreling towards me once more. I froze. There was no way I would be able to evade this speedy foe in time!

"Catch it with Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

I'd never tried to catch a moving target before. I knew enough to aim my psychic net where Geodude was _heading_ , not where he was _currently_. He raced into my grasp, and the force of the attack's momentum nearly threw me onto my back. But I steeled myself and prevented Geodude's escape.

" _Put me down_!" he demanded.

" _Okay,_ " I said as I dropped him.

This time, he did not get back up again.

"Geodude is unable to battle!" Rob-human announced, waving his green flag.

"So...we're both down to our last Pokemon. Challenger Alanna, show me your strength! Cranidos, go!" Roark-human intoned, withdrawing Geodude and sending out a gray, bipedal Pokemon with a blue head and tail.

" _What have we here? A little Ralts who thinks to defeat me?_ " Cranidos inquired mockingly.

" _It's you who will be defeated!_ " I stormed.

"What _is_ that?" Mistress marveled.

" **Cranidos, the Head Butt Pokemon. A lifelong jungle dweller from 100 million years ago, it would snap obstructing trees with headbutts,"** her Pokedex said helpfully.

"Cranidos lived 100 million years ago. I found a fossil of one some years ago and I had it restored at the Oreburgh Museum. We've been together ever since." Roark-human explained proudly.

"Well then I'll just show it the fight of this era! Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress exclaimed cockily.

I trapped Cranidos in my Confusion, and dashed him against the ground. He didn't seem too badly hurt. He mostly looked impatient.

"Headbutt!" Roark-human commanded.

Cranidos lowered his head, and began charging right at me.

"Dodge it, Ralts!" Mistress cried out worriedly.

I tried. I tried to get out of the way, but Cranidos crashed into me before I could do that. He rammed me right in the chest, sending me sprawling against the hard dirt floor. I lay there, stunned and wheezing, while my back was on fire from sliding across the ground.

"Ralts! You okay?" Mistress fretted.

" _Ah..._ " was all I could say.

I slowly and painfully got back to my feet, keeping a wary eye on Cranidos. He was tough, tougher than I thought he'd be. I couldn't let him get another hit on me. I had to succeed, for Mistress.

"Confusion!" Mistress ordered once I signaled that I was ready to continue.

Once again I picked up Cranidos and sent him flying into a boulder. The boulder shattered upon impact, and Cranidos almost fell to his knees when he landed. With a scowl, he righted himself.

" _Okay, that's it. No more mister nice guy._ " he told me angrily.

"Focus Energy!" Roark-human commanded.

A white outline surrounded Cranidos. The outline then rushed to his head, where it turned the blue part of his skull a dazzling, iridescent color.

"Confusion," Mistress said warily, suspicious of what Roark was up to.

"Evade it!" Roark-human commanded. Cranidos leaped out of my hold before I could trap him.

"Headbutt, Cranidos!" Roark-human shouted, a triumphant smile on his face.

Cranidos got a similar grin on his face as he lowered his still-glowing head and began charging at me again.

"Confusion, like before!" Mistress ordered, and somehow I knew she meant our trick with Geodude.

"Dodge it again!" Cranidos' Trainer commanded.

Too late, I had already caught the charging Cranidos in my psychic grasp. It was a good thing, too, because he was only a few feet away from me. I nearly dropped him when the force of his momentum assaulted me, but I powered through it, not daring to let him go. I dropped him, where he fell like the rock-type he was.

Cranidos took a few seconds to stand back up, and he was _mad_.

" _You're going down if it's the last thing I do!_ " he hissed, scraping his right foot against the ground.

"Headbutt!" Roark-human shouted.

I was unable to get out of the way, for Cranidos was too close to me for me to be able to dodge effectively.

I crash-landed right into a small boulder, and my head made a loud _whack_ as it struck the rock. I fell face-first into the ground, and for a few moments there my entire vision was black. Then, hazily, it returned.

"Ralts! Are you okay?" Mistress exclaimed.

" _Hanging...in there…_ " I said faintly, gritting my teeth as I _made_ myself stand up. My knees were trembling and my head absolutely pounding, but I wasn't out just yet.

I was worried, though. This battle wasn't going how I wanted it to. I knew I couldn't take another hit from Cranidos. I had to defeat him, somehow, and fast. My only consolation was that he was tired too. Not as much as me, but he looked like a couple more hits would drop him. I had to manage, somehow.

"Focus Energy, then Headbutt!" Roark-human commanded.

I scowled as Cranidos prepared. I was too tired to run. I could still attack him, but only if I had some distance between us. And there was no time to put some there.

"Go!" the Gym Leader ordered.

I closed my eyes, wishing desperately for there to be some way out of this. I couldn't let it end like this! I couldn't!

My desperation grew as I heard the dull thuds that came closer and closer to me.

 _No!_ , I screamed mentally as I braced myself for impact. I felt a tingling sensation run all over my body, then a second later it faded.

I heard a crashing sound far away, and I heard Mistress and Roark-human's confused sounds. Strangely, though, it sounded like Roark-human was closer to me than Mistress was.

Confused, I peeked an eye open, and I opened both is surprise. Somehow, I had been moved to Roark-human's side of the field. Cranidos was shaking his head. A pulverized boulder stood next to him.

"What just happened?" Mistress asked.

"Ralts learned Teleport, from the looks of it." Roark-human observed thoughtfully.

My eyes widened. I had...Teleported? Oh!

" _We can win this, Mistress!_ " I exclaimed happily in between pants. Now that I was far away from Cranidos I had enough time to summon up the energy for Confusion

"Awesome! Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress shouted confidently, pumping her fist up into the air.

It took me a few seconds, but I managed to catch Cranidos and lift him into the air. I struggled to keep my hold on him and to raise him, but I managed to do so. It was a huge relief when I let go.

Cranidos was breathing hard when he finally got up, and his legs were trembling. One more good hit, and he would be down.

I wasn't doing well myself, however. Using that Confusion had taken more energy than I thought it would have.

"Just a little bit more, Cranidos! I believe in you! Headbutt!" Roark-human encouraged.

" _Ugh…_ " Cranidos winced as he slowly started running for me.

"Teleport, Ralts! You can do it!" Mistress shouted.

I closed my eyes, preparing myself for the tough task ahead. I was pretty sure I knew how to Teleport again, and it would hopefully take less of my remaining energy than Confusion. Still, I was reaching the very end of my limit. My vision was beginning to blur, and the room was starting to spin.

I looked inward, tapping into my mind, where I kept my psychic power. I was appalled by how little was left. Never before had I used so much energy in one day. I took some of the remaining power, but instead of directing it to catch Cranidos, I had it surround myself instead. I willed the power around me to take me to the other side of the room. The power was slow to obey, but right before Cranidos hit me I managed to Teleport myself back over to Mistress' side of the battlefield.

The power dissipated, spent, and with a cry I fell to my knees.

It would have been so, _so_ easy to take a nap right then and there. For a long moment I was tempted to do that very thing. Every part of my body screamed for me to stop this madness, to rest and heal. But I couldn't. I had to win.

For Mistress.

"I must say, I'm impressed with how long your Ralts is holding out. It must want to win very badly." Roark-human observed. Mistress was surprised too, but she wasn't about to let the enemy know that.

"We're not about to give up yet. Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress vowed.

"Dodge with Pursuit!" Roark-human ordered.

Using the last of my power, I caught Cranidos. I struggled and struggled to lift him, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't summon enough energy.

 _Come_ on _, Ralts, lift the stupid Cranidos!_ I seethed inwardly as I felt sweat trickle down my forehead. _You've come this far; don't let Mistress down!_

"I believe in you, Ralts." I distantly heard Mistress say those words.

I screamed, and with that scream a rush of inner strength I did not know I had surged forward, threatening to overwhelm all of my senses.

I lifted Cranidos, and dashed him as hard as I could to the floor.

The strength left me, just as quickly as it had came, and I fell to my knees.

Cranidos and I both picked ourselves up from the ground, staring hard at each other. We remained that way for a few moments.

Then, Cranidos' eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed onto the ground.

* * *

"Cranidos is unable to battle! Alanna is the victor!" Rob-human announced, waving his green flag.

I wearily looked up, panting. Had I heard him right…?

"We...did it…" Mistress said faintly.

" _We did it!_ " she laughed.

I smiled weakly as I sat down. That had been a most excellent fight. I hadn't been sure we were going to win, but somehow, we pulled through.

Mistress was immediately at my side, spraying Potion everywhere. Immediately I felt much more alert, but still above all else I just wanted to rest. She scooped me up in her arms, startling me. She was laughing and crying at the same time while she jumped up and down.

We embraced each other, so joyfully happy in our hard-earned victory. Eventually, Mistress settled down when Roark-human came over to us, a tiny token in his hand.

"Well done. Truly, that was a magnificent battle. Your bond with your Pokemon is plain for all to see, and I am happy to give you the Coal Badge," he said proudly, handing us a brown-and-gray token. Mistress' eyes went wide as she accepted the badge.

"Awesome! Thank you so much!" she squealed.

"You should try the Eterna City Gym. The leader, Gardenia, uses grass-types. She's much stronger than I am. Eterna City is a few days up north. You'll have to go through Jubilife, then Floaroma Town first, though. The road from Oreburgh's under construction and they won't let anyone through." Roark-human advised.

"Eterna City, huh? Sounds good. Thanks! Come on, Ralts, let's go get you and Shinx healed up. Take care, Roark!" Mistress waved as she took me to the Pokemon Center.

I had to return to my Pokeball in order to be healed. I didn't understand why and I loathed to be away from Mistress, but she eventually convinced me to go inside my ball.

The Nurse Joy lady and Chansey put my Pokeball on some sort of metal machine, and as it began humming my eyes started to close. I'd take just one quick nap, and then I'd come back out.

The next thing I knew, Mistress was releasing me. I yawned as I materialized. That nap had been simply wonderful. I must have been healed as I slept, for all of my wounds were gone and I felt refreshed and ready to continue. I wasn't in any mood for another battle today, but I was prepared to start the journey to Eterna City.

"Thanks Nurse Joy," she said to the pink-haired human.

"No problem." the nurse replied sweetly.

" _See you again!_ " Chansey beamed as we left the Pokemon Center.

"I called my mom while I was waiting for you and Shinx," Mistress said as she led me back to Oreburgh Gate. "She's gonna pick us up and take us back to Jubilife City."

" _That was quick._ " I observed

"Eh,an hour and a half isn't _that_ quick." Mistress shrugged.

" _An hour and a half?_ " I echoed, confused by what she said.

"That's how long it took you and Shinx to be healed." Mistress informed me.

I frowned. That didn't seem right. It only felt like a couple minutes to me. I decided to not to pursue it, though, and we entered Oreburgh Gate once more.

We ate some fruit as we walked down the dim, lamp-lit tunnel. We didn't see very many Pokemon, and the ones we did see hid from us yet again.

" _The Roark-human said to go to a place called Eterna City, right?_ " I asked after an hour or so of walking. It was hard to tell time in this place.

"'The Roark-human'?" Mistress repeated, sounding amused.

" _That is what he is, yes,_ " I said patiently.

"His name is just Roark, Ralts. You don't add a -human to the end of it." she laughed. I did not know why she was laughing at me, and frankly it kind of hurt my feelings. However, I swallowed my pride and decided I would humor her instead. I still thought she was wrong, but I did not want to get into an argument over something so trivial.

"In any case, yeah, he did. Next up we're going to be fighting some grass-types. Think you can handle them?" Mistress went on.

" _Of course. I will have to get much stronger, though._ " I nodded. At my current strength, I would not be able to take on a tougher opponent on my own, since Shinx was of no use.

"Me too. Well, Eterna's a few days away. We'll have plenty of time to train before then." Mistress nodded resolutely.

We reached the end of the gate after a long time of walking. We squinted in the late afternoon sun, having been in the darkness for hours.

A silver car was waiting for us on Route 203, and inside of it…

"Mom!" Mistress shouted joyfully, breaking out into a run.

"Alanna!" her mother beamed, coming out of the car. She and Mistress embraced each other for a long moment.

"I've missed you guys so much. Say, where's Dad?" Mistress asked, peering inside of the car.

"He started his new job today, so he's at work. Hi Ralts, how are you?" Mistress' mother said to me as I came over to them.

" _Tired, but fine,_ " I said.

"He's working already? When do you start, then?" Mistress frowned as the humans got into the car.

"Tomorrow. I'm both nervous and excited. I don't know the streets of Jubilife like I do Rustboro's." her mother replied.

I looked inside of the silver box. It had two seats in the front and three in the back. A wheel was in front of the top-left seat. Mistress' mother sat in front of the wheel while Mistress sat next to her. I sat in the back.

To my confusion, Mistress reached back and put some kind of strap across me, tying me to the seat.

"You always have to put your seatbelt on, Ralts. That's the law," she said.

" _What is it for?_ " I inquired.

"If we get into a crash, it protects you from being flung forward through the windshield." Mistress explained as the car began vibrating.

" _What's going on?!_ " I demanded, struggling against my bonds.

"It's okay, Ralts. Mom just turned the car on. It's mechanical, like the boat." Mistress reassured.

I wasn't entirely convinced this was normal, but the humans were acting like it was no big deal, so I decided to drop it.

The car lurched forward, seemingly on its own. I remembered Mistress' father's explanation about how the boat moved, so I figured the car must have a similar setup.

The car quickly rolled faster and faster, until the scenery was almost a blur. I wasn't sure that going at this speed was safe, but again the humans didn't seem concerned. I looked ahead, and told myself that the path was clear, so nothing would crash into us.

Mistress and her mother chatted away about various things, so I decided to pass the time with another nap.

It didn't take me terribly long to fall asleep.

* * *

The next thing I knew, Mistress was gently shaking me awake.

"Wake up, Ralts. We're back in Jubilife," she said gently.

I yawned and opened my eyes as Mistress undid the seatbelt. I got out of the car, and paused. We were in front of a three-storied building with multicolored flags on the front.

This wasn't the apartment.

"This is the place where Dad works." Mistress told me, as if in response to my thought.

"Yes, the Poketch company. He's expecting us." her mother nodded.

We entered the tall building. There was a large reception area, and there was a metal door on the far wall. I spotted Mistress' father talking to a tall, brown-haired man, but at our arrival he glanced over at us. A large grin spread across his face.

"Hey! There's my girls!" he called from across the room. He and the unknown man came over to us.

"Alanna, Morgan, this is my boss and the CEO of the company, Mr. Davis," he said, briefly embracing the female humans.

"John Davis. It's a pleasure to meet you both! Tom's told me how lucky he is to have you. I'm grateful to have him on board." the human beamed, shaking their hands.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Morgan. It's an honor to be here." Mistress' mother nodded.

"I'm Alanna, and this is Ralts." Mistress introduced shyly.

" _Hello!_ " I beamed.

"Are you enjoying your Poketches? It was the least I could do to welcome you three to Sinnoh." Mr. Davis asked.

"Oh, yes. The pedometer and stopwatch are just _perfect_ for my morning jogs." Mistress' mother nodded.

"I haven't had a chance to use mine, but I'm sure it'll come in handy soon," Mistress said.

"Excellent! Customer satisfaction is our number one priority. The alarm clock app is actually something we haven't released to the public yet. Do tell me what you three think of it," Mr. Davis said.

"Oh, you'll have to ask my parents about that. I'm hard of hearing, so unfortunately alarm clocks don't really cut it for me." Mistress shrugged, gesturing to an ear.

"Not a problem! The app also has a vibrating function. Would you like me to show you?" Mr. Davis laughed. Mistress raised her eyebrows.

"Yes, please," she said eagerly, handing her Poketch to him.

"Okay, what you do is...go to 'Settings'...activate the 'Vibrate' function….and done! On both the analog and digital clocks you'll have the option to set an alarm," Mr. Davis said.

"Thank you!" Mistress grinned.

"Sir, my daughter also got her first Gym Badge today," her father said.

"Is that so?" Mr. Davis raised an eyebrow.

Mistress eagerly held out her shiny new badge. It was muffin-shaped, colored brown with silver trimmings.

"Wow! Good job, 'Lanna." her dad beamed.

"Oho, the Coal Badge! Very nice! ...Hm, tell you what. How's about I give you a new app we recently finished, as a gift from me for defeating your first Gym? It's called the Memo Pad. The feature is rather self-explanatory." Mr. Davis offered.

"Sure!" Mistress nodded.

"Great! Let me hang onto this for just a little bit longer. I'll have it delivered to your apartment first thing tomorrow morning," he said, pocketing the Poketch.

"Thank you, sir." Mistress nodded.

"It's my pleasure! It makes me happy seeing Trainers use my product. I never imagined that my little hobby would end up bringing joy to so many people...Ah, would you look at the time? Tom, we're late for a meeting," Mr. Davis said to Mistress' father.

"Oh, you're right. I have to go, but I'll see you all in a bit, okay?" Mistress' father said, quickly hugging Mistress and her mother and giving me a brief pat before following Mr. Davis through the metal door.

After that we drove back home, where Mistress played a game on the television while her mother cooked dinner. Her father came home just as her mother was setting down a dish of 'lasagna' on the table.

Mistress let me try some of it, and I found it good, if a bit too tomato-y. Shinx was sulking even more than usual, and he refused to speak with anyone for the rest of the evening. I think he was upset at getting knocked out by Geodude.

Eventually, it was time for bed. I fell asleep almost immediately.

Today had been a good day. A good day indeed.

* * *

 **The names and Pokedex entries I'm using aren't random, by the way :D**

 **The next entry will entail: a double battle with a Shiny Piplup, the hunter, and a kidnapped father.**


	5. The Red-haired Planet

Alanna (F/14): Money: $611 Badges: 1

Ralts (F): Trace/Synchronize

Moves: Growl, Confusion, Teleport

Shinx (M): Intimidate/Rivalry

Moves: Tackle

* * *

 _Day 4_

* * *

I woke to Mistress gently shaking me awake.

" _Mm?_ " I mumbled, blinking my eyes open and yawning.

Mistress was already dressed and ready for the day. I sat up, yawning once more.

"Morning Ralts. You sure slept like a log last night," Mistress observed as I got up. "I don't blame you, really. You fought hard yesterday. Come on, Mom's just put breakfast on the table."

The mention of food was enough to perk me right up. I was _famished!_

Mistress' parents were already seated at the table. Shinx was crouched in a corner, hardly touching his food.

"Ah, there's Ralts. How are you feeling?" her father asked me kindly.

" _Hungry,_ " I replied right before stuffing a fistful of food into my mouth. The humans laughed.

"Ralts sure worked up an appetite after your battle yesterday," her mother mused.

Mistress' mother was wearing a blue outfit, with a matching hat. Her green hair was tied up in a bun.

"Excited to start work today?" Mistress asked as she helped herself to some toast.

"Oh, yes. Today I'm just going to meet my new partner and get to know the streets of Jubilife. Shouldn't be a bad day; I was told the crime rates here are fairly low for such a big city," Mistress' mother replied eagerly.

There was a knock at the door. Mistress' father got up and opened it, revealing an unknown male, who gave him Mistress' Poketch. Her father thanked the man and returned to the table.

"Oh, awesome! I can't wait to try this thing out!" Mistress said gleefully, taking her Poketch and putting it back on her wrist.

"I'm going to set it for noon," she continued, tapping it a few times.

After breakfast, it was time to set out for Eterna City. First we had to pass through a small town named Floaroma Town. I liked the sound of the name; it reminded me of the sweet smell of flowers. Maybe Floaroma would be covered in plants.

Mistress' parents had to leave for their respective jobs. They kissed her forehead and told her to call them when she had made it into Floaroma Town.

"I will, I will. There's a bus going there and I plan on taking it, so it'll only be like, a thirty-minute trip," Mistress assured them.

We said our goodbyes, and then once again we were off to the next gym. I was eager to get out of Jubilife and back into nature. I'd almost forgotten how much I hated the claustrophobic city.

"Okay, so...If we arrive in Floaroma Town at around ten-thirty, then we'll have the option of staying the night or moving on. Hm. I'd rather move on, but by the time we get to an inn, it'll be after midnight…*Sigh* I guess we can stay a day in Floaroma," Mistress sighed, reading her guidebook.

" _That sounds nice,_ " I said, then paused, confused. I could faintly hear the sounds of an argument. The strangest thing was, I thought I recognized Professor Rowan's voice among them.

"What's up, Ralts?" Mistress inquired, noticing that I had stopped.

" _I'm not entirely certain, but I think I hear Professor Rowan arguing with someone,_ " I said slowly, still trying to discern whether or not I was hearing correctly.

Mistress frowned. "Lead me to it?"

I led her down a street, through an alley, and into a small park. There, the professor and an unknown girl were shouting at the two funny-looking men from the Jewel last morning.

All four noticed our entrance.

"Ah! Alanna! Thank goodness you're here! These two hooligans are trying to steal my research!" the professor hailed us, clutching his briefcase tightly.

"Great, now we got _another_ Trainer to deal with," the man of the left grumbled.

"Hey, kid. This has nothing to do with you. So scram!" the other one yelled at us.

"Yeah, right. Who are you, and why do you want Professor Rowan's research?" Mistress demanded coldly, stepping closer to the four.

I was more slow to follow, watching the two men warily. Aside from the hunter, I'd never dealt with actual _criminals_ before. Mistress and the other human could get very hurt if they weren't careful.

"Who are we? Hah! We are Team Galactic! We don't care about the law, or what have you. When we create our new world, there'll be no need for do-gooding kids like you," the first man bragged.

"This is your last chance to hand over your research. Do it now, or suffer the consequences!" the second one threatened, holding out a Pokeball menacingly.

"I don't know what a 'Team Galactic' is, but you're not gonna lay a finger on the professor if I can help it!" the mystery girl stormed, pointing a manicured finger at them.

She had light brown skin, and long teal hair that was tied in a loose ponytail. She had messy bangs, and her eyes were also teal. She wore a red-orange sweatshirt with long black pants, and brown hiking boots. Her nails were painted red, and she had star-shaped earrings. A black bag lay on the ground next to her.

"What she said. If you want a fight, we'll give you the fight of this century!" Mistress agreed venomously, coming to stand beside her.

"So you wanna do this the hard way, huh? That's fine. We'll cause massive damage to you and your Pokemon, and then the professor's research will be _ours_!" the first man shouted as he and his cohort each threw out a Pokeball.

" _Time for a battle, eh?" "Who are these people?"_

Two Pokemon I'd never seen before came out. The one on the left was four-legged, and mainly colored dark purple. A horrid stench wafted from him and towards us. I felt my eyes water at the smell of it.

The Pokemon on the right looked more elegant. She was lean and gray, with whiskers and two pointed ears. She had a smug smile on her face, as if she thought she were better than us.

"What are those?" Mistress asked, tilting her head.

"A Stunky and Glameow, from the looks of it," the teal-haired girl mused as she and Mistress pulled out their Pokedexes at the same time.

" **Stunky, the Skunk Pokemon. It sprays a foul fluid from its rear. Its stench spreads over a mile, driving Pokemon away,** " the mystery girl's Pokedex informed helpfully.

" **Glameow, the Catty Pokemon. It hides its spiteful tendency of hooking its claws into the nose of its Trainer if it isn't fed,"** Mistress' Pokedex explained.

"You know, that Stunky would be almost cute if it weren't for the smell. I'm Tanya, by the way. Tanya Martinez," the teal-haired girl introduced.

"Alanna Wallin, and this is Ralts. Wish we met under more pleasant circumstances," Mistress said grimly, shaking Tanya's hand.

"Indeed. Let's teach these two idiots a lesson, shall we?" Tanya invited.

"Let's. Go, Ralts!" "Piplup, dazzle them!"

Though I was nervous, I raced out to meet the two Pokemon. These two men wanted to hurt us. They wanted to hurt _Mistress_. I could **not** let them do that. Tanya sent out a...purple Piplup? But Piplups were blue, not purple...

"What in the actual hell? You have a _Shiny Piplup?!_ How?!" Mistress demanded. Tanya shrugged.

"Right place, right time," she replied enigmatically. Mistress whirled around to face the professor.

"It's not mine. She already had it when she came to get her Pokedex from me," the professor replied, almost defensively.

"Hey! You three gonna keep standing around, or are we gonna fight?" one of the 'Team Galactic' men shouted indignantly. Mistress turned back to them.

"Sorry, I forgot about you two. I mean, how can anyone take you seriously? You look like clowns dressed up as astronauts. But, if you insist. Ralts, Confusion on Glameow!" Mistress taunted.

"Piplup, Peck Stunky!" Tanya commanded.

" _On that smelly_ thing _?! ...Fine, but I am going to need at_ least _a three-hour bath to get that smell off of me,"_ Piplup grumbled as he flew towards the Stunky. He landed on top of the Stunky's back and began furiously Pecking at his skull.

Meanwhile, I had successfully managed to lift Glameow in my psychic hold. I lifted her up into the air, then dropped her once she was sufficiently high enough. She fell to the ground with a thud, her Trainer demanding she get back up.

" _Quit yelling at me or I kiss you with my claws again,_ " she grumbled, irritably washing her front paws once she got up.

"Once we defeat you, we're taking your Pokedexes and the Piplup with us as well. That'll please our bosses to no end! Stunky, use Fury Swipes on that Piplup!" Stunky's Trainer grinned wickedly.

"Over my dead body, _pendejo._ Piplup, dodge it!" Tanya growled.

"Glameow, Scratch that Ralts!" Glameow's Trainer ordered.

"Growl!" Mistress commanded.

I let out a fierce Growl that even affected the Stunky. Both foes were momentarily caught off guard, and as a result their blows were less painful. Of course, Piplup dodged, while I was still raked cruelly across the face by Glameow's claws.

I cried out, falling right on my rump. Weakened or not, Glameow had quite the sharp claws!

"Piplup, use Bubble!" "Ralts, Teleport then Confusion!" Me and Piplup's Trainers commanded.

" _Make it a_ four-hour _bath!_ " " _On it!_ " we said as we executed our orders.

Piplup blew large bubbles at both Stunky and Glameow, which exploded on contact with our foes' skin. I Teleported behind Glameow, then before her Trainer could warn her I swiftly picked her up and none-too-gently put her back down with Confusion.

Both Stunky and Glameow were panting hard. They were clearly tired, but their Trainers were having none of it.

"Don't you dare fail us, Stunky and Glameow! Stunky, use Poison Gas on Ralts!" Stunky's Trainer stormed.

"And Glameow, use Scratch on that blasted Piplup!" Glameow's Trainer chimed in.

" _Ugh…"_ Glameow groaned.

She dashed over to Piplup and brutally raked his body with her sharp claws before he or Tanya could react. Stunky, meanwhile, began exhaling an ominous purple cloud at me.

"Teleport out of the way, Ralts!" Mistress fretted. I agreed. That cloud did not look friendly in the slightest. I shuddered to think of what would happen to me if I were to come in contact with it.

I turned my power inwards, directing it to take me back to our side of the field. A tingling sensation came over me, and before I knew it I was back near Mistress. The Poison Gas dissipated shortly thereafter.

"Ralts, Confusion on Stunky!" Mistress stormed.

"No, don't do that. Stunky's a poison- and dark- type; Confusion wouldn't do anything," Tanya advised.

"Oh, good call. Alright, Confusion on Glameow, then!" Mistress corrected.

"Dodge it!" Glameow's Trainer ordered. Glameow leaped to the left, evading my invisible grasp.

"Quick, Piplup, Peck Glameow!" Tanya shouted. Piplup was eager to obey, attacking Glameow before she had registered what was going on.

"Again!" Tanya encouraged.

"Counter with Scratch, Glameow!"

"No you don't! Ralts, hold Glameow with Confusion!" Mistress counter-counterattacked.

I caught Glameow and lifted her only about a Ralts-length up into the air. I kept her still this time, and Piplup was free to Peck her until she gave a loud cry.

I released her, and Glameow flopped to the ground. It was clear she was completely spent.

"What?! No! Glameow, get up!" her Trainer raged. But she wouldn't.

"Argh! It's all up to you. Punish those kids for what they did to my Glameow!" he hissed to his teammate, recalling his fallen Pokemon.

"Roger that. Stunky, use Fury Swipes on Piplup!" his partner nodded.

" _Must I? I'm so tired though…"_ Stunky sighed, but nevertheless took a great leap towards Piplup, slashing him multiple times with quick, sharp strikes. With a cry, Piplup fell to the ground.

"Piplup! You alright?" Tanya fretted, wringing her hands nervously.

" _I've got_ dirt _on me now! No I am not okay!"_ Piplup snapped, meticulously brushing dust and dirt from his purple body.

"Well, once you're done obsessing over yourself, use Bubble would you?" Tanya replied without even a blink.

"It's up to you, Tanya. Ralts' only offensive move is Confusion, and you said that wouldn't work on Stunky," Mistress muttered crossly.

"Maybe, but you can still help. If Stunky attacks, you can still use Growl," Tanya muttered back.

Mistress nodded. "Can do."

"Quit your whispering! Stunky, use Fury Swipes again!" Stunky's Trainer commanded.

"Ralts, Growl!" Mistress ordered as Stunky began bounding towards Piplup, who was still dusting himself off.

I let out a fierce Growl, startling Stunky as he came closer to Piplup, who seemed to realize what was going on. Piplup stopped grooming himself and let out a plethora of Bubbles that flew over to the startled Stunky and exploded once they made contact with him.

Stunky wailed, and flopped to the ground. He would not get back up, no matter how hard his Trainer screamed and shouted.

"Damn it all to hell! How to two _kids_ defeat members like _us?!"_ Stunky's Trainer seethed, stamping his foot as he recalled Stunky.

"I knew we should have asked for stronger Pokemon…" Glameow's Trainer grumbled.

" _We did it!_ " I exclaimed in both joy and wonder. Piplup puffed out his chest.

" _All thanks to me, of course. Not only am I the most handsomest Pokemon, but I am also the strongest. No one can match my beauty or strength,"_ he bragged arrogantly.

"Yeah! Suck it, morons!" Mistress shouted pridefully, pumping her fist up into the air. A quiet cough from the professor made her blush.

"Ah, begging your pardon, sir," she said sheepishly, turning briefly to face him.

"We won, so get lost. And if we _ever_ see you two clowns again, we'll just have to give you another beatdown, free of charge!" Tanya grinned, pounding her fist in her hand.

"Now pay up. It's the rules, ain't it?" Mistress demanded, holding out her hand. The two men looked at her as if she was crazy.

"Us, pay _you_? Get real. We'll retreat for now, but mark my words: _you haven't seen the last of Team Galactic,"_ Glameow's Trainer threatened in a low tone. Then, he and his partner took off running.

"Let them go. I don't think they'll be showing their faces around here anytime soon," the professor said as we four prepared to chase after them.

"I guess. I'm glad we were able to stop those two. Who did they say they were? Team Galactic?" Mistress asked.

"I've never heard of the name before. Perhaps they were just common hooligans. In any case, I cannot thank you both enough for saving my research. Without it, I couldn't give my presentation here in a few minutes," the professor said.

"We couldn't just let them steal it," Tanya shrugged.

"Well, again, thank you. I hate to be so haste, but this delay will make me late for my presentation. Tanya, Alanna, thank you again for your assistance. I am glad I entrusted Pokedexes to you both. Have a safe rest of the day," the professor nodded as he began walking off.

"Bye!" "Take care!" Mistress and Tanya called.

Then, a beeping sound came from Tanya's pants.

"'Scuse me for a sec," she said as she pulled out a phone.

"Yo…...No, why?...Really?...I'm sorry, it must have slipped my mind…..I don't know; I think of something…...Yes, I _will_ …...Sure. See ya," Tanya said to the phone, rolling her eyes in mock-annoyance at Mistress.

"Sorry, my little brother called. So, where you off to now?" Tanya inquired to Mistress, recalling Piplup as she put away her phone.

"Floaroma Town, then to Eterna City. You?" Mistress replied.

"I'll be heading up that way soon as well. There's a Contest in Floaroma tomorrow, and I intend on winning it!" Tanya said resolutely.

"Oh, you're a Coordinator? Gotcha. Well, I need to get going if I want to catch the bus to Floaroma. Good luck tomorrow," Mistress nodded.

"Thanks. I have to go as well. My brother reminded me that it's our mother's birthday this weekend, and I may or may not have forgotten to get something. See ya later!" Tanya waved as she began jogging towards one of the many department stores.

With that crisis over, we made our way out of Jubilife and into Route 204. It was a grassy route, and there was a large pond that reflected the clear blue sky. There was a slight incline, and as we continued down the path it continued to get more and more angled.

* * *

Finally, we reached the bus stop. There was someone waiting on the bench, and once I saw who it was I felt my heart seize up in fear.

It was the hunter.

Mistress saw him too, and waves of annoyance came rolling off of her. She still held a grudge, it seemed.

"Oh, hello. Alanna and Ralts, was it? Fancy seeing you two here. Care for another battle? I won't even use my Serperior this time," the hunter said pleasantly once we approached.

"Hell no. What are you doing here?" Mistress demanded, crossing her arms. The hunter raised his eyebrows.

"No need to be rude, we don't have to have a battle. I'm waiting for the bus to Floaroma Town. It should be here soon. Are you taking the bus too?" he inquired.

"Nope. We're taking the long way, because we want to," Mistress responded huffily. I looked at her thankfully. Though we had been planning on taking the bus, I did not relish being near the hunter. And neither did she.

"Is that so? Well, just follow the path, then when you get to the fork in the road take a left. The right's for vehicles only. You'll have to go through a small cave named Ravaged Path, but it'll take you no time at all to get through it. After that, it's just a quick thirty-minute walk to Floaroma," the hunter directed.

"Thanks, but I have my guidebook. See you," Mistress said shortly as she directed me to follow her.

After about five minutes, we came to the fork in the road. There was a sign nearby.

"Yeah, he was right. We go left," Mistress said as she read the sign.

Soon, we came to the Ravaged Path. True to its name, it appeared destitute and desolate. There were large cracks in the rock wall, and the lanterns inside had been smashed to pieces. Judging by how dusty everything was, barely anyone had come here in awhile.

"Huh, no wonder most people take the bus instead of going through this place," Mistress observed as we tentatively entered the cave. Her voice echoed, and deep within I could hear the screeches of annoyed Zubats.

She took out a flashlight from her backpack, and we used the broken lanterns as a guide to where we should go. We tread carefully, keeping to the center of the path, as broken glass was strewn near the edges. We were both only too glad when we saw the end of the cave.

Once we were back into the light, the scent of flowers was heavy in the air. It was downwind of where we were supposed to go, and my heart pulsed with excitement. Floaroma Town had to be full of flowers. I _had_ to see it!

"Alright, just a little bit more, and then we'll be there," Mistress nodded confidently.

We walked through a small forest, the scent of flowers getting heavier and heavier as we came closer to our destination. When we made it through the woods, we could see the gate leading to Floaroma just up ahead.

It was being guarded by two little girls who looked _exactly_ the same. The only difference was that their hair was tied into a bun in the opposite directions.

"Hiya! I'm Liv, and this is my sister, Liz! You have to battle us if you want to enter the town!" the girl on the left said, taking her fingers from her mouth.

"Uh...sure?" Mistress blinked. Neither of us were expecting to be challenged.

"We fight together, so it's a double battle!" the girl on the right chimed in. Mistress looked up, panicked.

"A...double battle?" she repeated nervously. I realized what she was thinking, and I was nervous too. Shinx probably wouldn't obey, so I would have to take on two opponents at once. Could I do it?

"Yep! Get ready, cause here we go! Pachirisu, go!" the girls said at the same time, each throwing out a Pokeball.

" _Ready!"_ their Pokemon chimed in unison.

Even their Pokemon looked exactly the same. Both were small and white, with large bushy tails, yellow cheeks, and a blue stripe running down their backs and tails.

" **Pachirisu, the EleSquirrel Pokemon. A pair may be seen rubbing their cheek pouches together in an effort to share stored electricity,** " Mistress' Pokedex informed.

"Electric-types, I'm guessing? Hm. Oh well, let's get this over with. Ralts and Shinx, go!" Mistress sighed, then shouted.

Dutifully I raced out onto the battlefield as Shinx materialized next to me.

" _What gives?_ " he demanded, seeing the situation.

" _We didn't realize we were getting into a double battle. I don't think I can do this by myself; please help,_ " I told him quickly. He stared at me incredulously, then shook his head.

" _Please!_ " I begged him as the girls ordered their Pokemon to use Quick Attack on us.

Shinx opened his mouth to respond, but whatever he was about to say was lost as something white crashed into him. A split second later, I felt something bowl into me, knocking me down to the ground. Shinx and I slid across the grass, dazed.

We got to our feet unsteadily, having been completely caught off-guard by the double attack. No wonder it was called a 'double battle'.

"You two alright? Good. Shinx, use Tackle on the Pachirisu on the right! Ralts, use Confusion on the left-hand Pachirisu!" Mistress commanded.

"Bide!" the girls commanded in response.

A white outline surrounded both Pachirisu as I caught the one on the left in my psychic grasp. I lifted her up into the air, and slammed her down on the ground. She flinched, but stoically endured the hit. Shinx, as usual, refused to do anything.

"For crying out loud, Shinx!" Mistress yelled in frustration, slapping her hand to her forehead. "Ralts, Confusion on the one on the right, then."

I hastened to make up for Shinx's disobedience. Like I did before, I picked up the other Pachirisu and threw her to the ground. She too stumbled, but ultimately righted herself.

"Fire!" the twins shouted.

The two Pachirisu became completely surrounded in a translucent white aura, then both shot large white beams headed straight for me.

"Dodge it, Ralts!" Mistress commanded.

I started to jump out of the way, but unfortunately I was too slow. Both of the Bides enveloped me in their powerful, blinding light. I screamed as the attacks overwhelmed my senses. This was too much! I couldn't take it any more, and soon all was black and silent.

* * *

The next thing I knew, I was inside my Pokeball. I looked around, very confused. Why was I back in here? And where were the twins, their Pachirisu, and Shinx? None of this made any sense.

Outside my ball, I could sense Nurse Joy and Chansey hand Mistress me as well as another. Mistress thanked them, and began walking outside.

I realized then what had happened, and I burned with shame. Those two combined Bides had defeated me. Shinx was unlikely to have avenged me, so in all likelihood we had lost.

I had failed.

I distantly heard Mistress call my name as I was expunged from my Pokeball. I rematerialized next to her, outside of the Pokemon Center.

The first thing I noticed was the overpowering smell of many different types of flowers. I could smell roses, daffodils, and many more that I didn't recognize. Bewildered. I gazed around, wondering where we were. Then it hit me. We were in Floaroma Town. We had to be, because there was not a single patch of grass that wasn't covered in an overabundance of flowers. Pink flowers, yellow flowers, blue flowers; Floaroma Town should be named Rainbow-Flower Town instead.

The town itself was thankfully much smaller than Jubilife. The buildings were only a couple stories high, and the roads were made of plain dirt. Few cars could be seen, and humans weren't crowded together as they walked to and from different places.

" _Wow! I like this place,_ " I marveled, almost drooling at how pretty the town looked.

If Mistress ever wanted to settle down, I hoped she'd choose Floaroma. I could certainly stay here forever and never be bored.

"*sniff* I don't. All these flowers are making my allergies go crazy," Mistress grumbled, rubbing her eyes.

" _Did we win?_ " I asked, turning to Mistress even though I already knew the answer.

She sighed. "No, we didn't. Had to give those twins $61. Their faces lit up like rockets when they saw how much they were earning. They directed me to the Pokemon Center, and while I was waiting for you and Shinx to heal I called my parents. On the plus side, the alarm app on my Poketch works perfectly! Now, let's get some lunch. I'm starving."

I looked up at the sky, and blanched when I saw that the sun was directly overhead. I'd been out for almost _two hours!_

We wandered down a dusty path until we passed a small restaurant called Amber Orchid. We both liked the name, so we entered and sat down at a booth. Mistress ordered a BLT with fries while I ate some citrusy Pokemon food. We finished, paid, and went back outside to explore the town.

The town was mainly comprised of flower stores, hardware stores (with a big emphasis on gardening), or berry stores. Mistress bought a few Oran Berries, as well as a Pecha Berry and Chesto Berry. While we were out buying supplies, we stopped at a Pokemart and got two more Potions.

Our exploration took a couple hours, and when we returned to the Pokemon Center we weren't quite sure what to do.

"It's too late to move on, not unless we want to spend the night outdoors. But there isn't much else to do here, except gardening. Hm...I guess we could reserve our room for tonight, then explore the next Route a bit?" Mistress suggested as we stood outside the red building. I didn't see any fault in that plan, so went back inside and asked to rent a room for the night.

"Oh, I'm very sorry, but all of our rooms are currently full. There's a Contest tomorrow, you see, and the competitors have all arrived. Actually...there might be some room. A young woman came in last night and requested a room all to herself. I could see if she's willing to share; let me call her," Nurse Joy apologized as she picked up a phone.

"Hello…?" a woman's voice mumbled from the phone. She sounded like we had just woken her up.

"Hello, Miss Devel, this is Nurse Joy. There's a young Trainer here who needs a room for the night, and we are all full. Would you be willing to let her stay with you?" Nurse Joy asked politely.

"Wha…? Oh…*yawn* sure...I'll be gone by night anyway…" the woman responded sleepily.

"Thank you very much for your generosity. Goodbye."

"Sure…"

"Oh, thank goodness she's letting us stay with her. I know not many would do that for a complete stranger," Mistress breathed a sigh of relief. Nurse Joy handed her a silver key.

"Miss Devel's room is Room 203. It's on the second floor," she informed.

Mistress thanked her and we headed on up to our room. Once we got there, Mistress unlocked the door and we quietly stepped inside.

The room held four bunk beds lying parallel against the wall, for a total of eight beds in all. Our kind benefactor was asleep on the top bunk of one on the right side, as far away from the window as possible. She didn't stir, and we tiptoed inside so as not to wake her.

She had long, dark violet hair that cascaded down her shoulders. A purple parasol was folded neatly in the corner, and the blinds were drawn, so that very little sunlight entered the room. Her skin was pale, so pale it was almost white. Mistress gasped in horror when she saw the woman.

"Holy _shit_ , that woman is dead!" she whispered frantically. I looked over to the woman, just in time to see her roll over to her side. I looked back over to Mistress, raising an eyebrow. But Mistress was already striding over, gently shaking the woman.

"Are you okay?" she asked fretfully. The woman stirred, then another good shake from Mistress had her opening her eyes, which were as violet as her hair.

"Mmm?" the woman mumbled, unsteadily focusing her gaze on Mistress.

"Are you alright? You're deathly pale," Mistress repeated.

"Hm? Oh…" the woman yawned. "I'm fine...Healthy….Don't get much sun…." she murmured, closing her eyes and turning away from us.

"Oh...Well, alright then. Sorry to bother you like that," Mistress apologized sheepishly.

"S'all right…" the woman mumbled, and soon she was back asleep.

" _That wasn't polite,_ " I frowned, whispering. Mistress blushed.

"Sorry. She looked like a corpse or something," she explained apologetically, whispering as well. I shook my head in disapproval.

* * *

We decided to leave the woman alone for the rest of the day, until she woke up. In the meantime, we decided to explore the next route, Route 205.

We saw a cluster of Bidoof playing in a river that ran parallel to the path. To the right of us lay some bushes and trees, and once we spotted a couple of Pachirisu chasing each other in the branches.

After a while, though, the faint sound of crying came to my ears.

" _I hear crying,_ " I reported. Mistress shook her head.

"This has been happening an awful lot...Nevertheless, lead me to it," she directed.

I followed the noise down the path, and froze when we came to the source of the crying. The hunter was kneeling next to a small girl with short brown hair, a red bow, and a yellow dress. What had he done to her?!

But then he looked up at our approach, and I saw real concern in his eyes. What?

"Oh, Alanna, Ralts. Your timing is perfect," he said urgently, standing up. The girl stood up too, holding his hand.

Mistress was wary, but she was also concerned about the girl.

"What's up?" she asked. The hunter looked down at the child

"I was walking down the road when I came across this girl. Her name's Emily, and she says her father was kidnapped." he explained. Both Mistress and I widened our eyes in alarm.

"Kidnapped?!" we exclaimed. Emily nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"D-Daddy was at work, a-and he said I could come t-t-too, and then these astronauts c-came, a-and they took him away, and th-they k-k-kicked me out and won't let me back in!" she sniffed, her lip trembling.

Mistress and I shared a glance with each other.

"'Astronauts'? Did they have aqua hair?" Mistress asked. Emily nodded while the hunter stared at us.

"Do you know who did it?" he demanded.

"Yeah, we fought them earlier today. Two ruffians who call themselves 'Team Galactic'. They should be easy to eradicate, thankfully." Mistress nodded.

"Th-there were more than two...and there was a lady w-with red hair and an old m-man with purple-pink hair," Emily shook her head.

"There's _more_ of them?! What?" Mistress exclaimed, aghast. The hunter clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white.

"I can't stand by and let this happen. I know you're not fond of me, Alanna, but I could use your help. What do you say?" he offered. Mistress didn't even need to think twice.

"Of course." she nodded. "Emily, I'm Alanna, and this is Ralts. Us and Hunter are going to get your father back, alright?"

Emily nodded, more tears welling up in her eyes.

"Can you lead us to where your father works?" Mistress asked.

Emily led us further down the path, and about an hour later we reached a large gray building with what Mistress called 'windmills' surrounding it. We hid behind some bushes, surveying the scene. The two men we fought this morning were there, guarding the door. Other than them, there was no one else in sight.

"The Valley Windworks, huh? What could they want with a power plant? Doesn't matter, this shouldn't take long. Emily, things might get dangerous, so you wait outside, alright? Don't try and talk to the men anymore," the hunter directed. Emily nodded wordlessly.

"Ready?" he asked Mistress and I. We nodded, eager to save Emily's dad from these horrible people.

We marched down to the front entrance. The two men saw us the moment we came out from the bushes.

"Hey, beat it, you two," the one on the left growled as we approached them. He held out a Pokeball menacingly.

"I thought we agreed that I'd never see you two again. So now you're gonna pay the consequences!" Mistress scowled, pounding her fist into her hand. The two men stared at her in confusion.

"The hell are you talking about? We've never seen you before," the one on the right snorted.

"Don't play dumb; we fought this morning. You two were trying to steal Professor Rowan's research!" Mistress accused, pointing a finger at them.

"Those were two totally different people. Now scram!" the member on the left denied, calling out Glameow. His partner released Stunky.

" _Fighting? Right_ now _?"_ Glameow sighed.

" _Who cares? They can't get past us!_ " Stunky glowered at us.

"See, you're using the exact same Pokemon as before!" Mistress shouted.

"Release Emily's father!" the hunter demanded coldly, sending out Serperior.

The large, serpentine Pokemon was still as intimidating as before. He passed an emotionless glance over me before staring regally down at our two foes. Glameow and Stunky blanched upon meeting Serperior's judgmental eyes.

"What on earth is _that_?" Stunky's Trainer gasped upon seeing him.

"I'll take care of this. Serperior, Leaf Tornado!" the hunter commanded.

" _Submit,_ " Serperior told our enemies as he began whirling his tail around, faster and faster.

He spun his tail so fast it was just a blur. A miniature-tornado formed, and nearby leaves were picked up into the funnel. Once the tornado was ready, Serperior flicked his tail over at Glameow and Stunky. The Leaf Tornado whirled across the field, and sent our enemies careening into their Trainers.

"Augh!" "Wahhh!" the two criminals exclaimed as they were knocked straight onto their rears.

Both Glameow and Stunky had been knocked out by the lone blow. The two Team Galactic men recalled their Pokemon, hastily getting to their feet.

"What _are_ you?" Glameow's Trainer marveled at the hunter while the other fiddled with the door.

"We'll see how you like getting locked out!" the other yelled as the two swiftly ran inside the building.

The two humans tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Nuts. Time to break the door down, then. Serperior—"

"Wait! Ralts knows Teleport; we can just use that. It'll be much quieter than busting on in, too," Mistress interrupted the hunter.

He paused, then nodded. "Good call."

To me, Mistress ordered, "Teleport!"

I'd never Teleported more than just myself at one time. But, I was willing to give it a shot. We had to save Emily's captive father, before the goons could hurt him further.

With Mistress translating my instructions, I ordered for everyone to grab my hands. The hunter took my left while touching Serperior with his other, while Mistress took hold of my right. Looking inward, I directed my mental power to surround all four of us. The power slid over me easily, but couldn't quite reach everyone else. I pulled and tugged at the invisible layer, stretching it until it finally surrounded the others. Gritting my teeth, I then commanded it to Teleport us inside the building. The power was slow to react, and I tugged harder. Like a dam that had been burst, power suddenly flowed through me, and the next thing I knew, we were inside the facility.

The walls were whitewashed, with few windows and machines everywhere. I sat down on the ground, suddenly exhausted by my Teleportation.

"Alanna, don't have Ralts use Teleport anymore," the hunter suggested. She looked at him in confusion.

"Why?"

"We might need an escape plan if things go awry. It might be best if the enemy doesn't know all our tricks."

"...That makes sense. Alright, I won't," Mistress nodded. Even I had to agree the plan was good.

One of the Galactic men came rushing towards us a second later.

"Hey, how did you get in here?!" he demanded, shocked by our unexpected intrusion.

"Fuck you, that's how. Why are you here? Where are you keeping Emily's father?" Mistress demanded coldly.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the man rebuked, crossing his arms and looking away from us.

"Serperior, Leaf Storm," the hunter commanded.

Serperior lifted his head, and out of nowhere glowing green leaves began surrounding his body, whirling faster and faster until they became a miniature hurricane.

" _Bow to me, human,_ " Serperior told the Galactic man as he sent the Leaf Storm at him.

The man was thrown against the wall. I cringed at the sound of the impact; that _had_ to have hurt!

"Up the stairs, down the hall, and to the right! That's where the Windworks worker is! Just don't do that again…" the man begged as we took a step closer.

"Thanks. Let's move!" the hunter urged.

We broke into a run, dashing to the spot the goon had directed us to. We arrived at a large electronic door. The hunter pressed a button on a small console attached to the wall, and with a hiss the door slid open. We rushed inside, where we were immediately surrounded by…

"The hell? Are you all clones or something?" Mistress demanded. Surrounding us were exact copies of the two men we fought this morning!

"This look is the dress code; show some respect!" one man stormed.

We were on a small catwalk, with stairs leading down to the next floor against the eastern wall. This room was filled with computers, all with blinking lights and flashing screens. There were three people who looked different from the not-clones in front of one of the computers. The one typing furiously, looking incredibly nervous, was a tall male with dark brown hair. To the left of him was a smug-looking woman with red hair in a similar outfit as the goons. To the right of the man was a small, elderly man with mauve hair, holding a small laptop. All three looked up at our arrival.

"Intruders? But how? The guards at the door should've kept everyone out!" the old man exclaimed in confusion.

"They were no match for us! Who are you? What do you want with this place?" the hunter called down as the 'clones' drew closer.

"Us? We're Team Galactic, of course! We are trying to create a new world that is better than this one. To do that, we need energy from the Windworks. And you two are trying to stop us, it seems. Well, that won't happen! Stop them, now!" the woman ordered.

"Yes ma'am!" the henchmen shouted, pulling out Pokeballs and releasing them.

Multiple Glameows, Stunkys Zubats, and Cascoons came out, all voicing their eagerness to stop us.

"Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress ordered as the hunter commanded Serperior to use Leaf Tornado.

It was hard to maneuver around on the small catwalk, but I did my best. I grabbed Zubats and Cascoons in my Confusion, tossing them against the floor below. Next to me, Serperior shot off volley after volley of Leaf Tornado, all the while demanding the enemy surrender.

As we fought, I was struck three times by two Glameow's Scratches, and then by a Zubat's Astonish. The last attack almost made me faint, but Mistress quickly healed me right up with a Potion. Serperior was hit multiple times as well, but the blows might as well have been pinpricks. He never flinched, not even once.

Finally, the goons were out of Pokemon.

We four raced down the catwalk as menacingly approached the trio on the ground.

"Help me, please," the prisoner begged. The old man slapped him on the back of the head.

"Shut up and keep transferring data," he ordered sternly.

"We beat your men. Now give up," Mistress demanded. The woman laughed.

"Oh, please. They're nothing compared to _my_ power. It's you who should be surrendering. But I can see in your eyes that you won't. That's fine; I'll just have to show you the error of your ways! Go, Zubat!" she sneered as she sent out a Zubat.

" _You are going_ down _!_ " she snarled as she was released from her ball.

"Go, Ralts!" Mistress called.

I raced to meet this flying foe, determined to save this poor man, who had to be Emily's father. He had the same face-shape as her.

"Confusion!" Mistress commanded.

"Dodge it!" the lady countered as I began to summon the invisible field. Zubat flew out of the way before I could grasp her.

"Bite!" the lady continued.

With a shriek, Zubat dove straight for my face, her fangs outstretched.

"Growl!" Mistress ordered. I Growled fiercely, making Zubat momentarily flinch in her flight towards me. Her attack still hit me, but it was sloppily executed, only grazing my cheek. The wound stung, but it was nothing I couldn't shake off.

"Confusion!" Mistress tried again.

This time, I was able to catch Zubat in my psychic grip. I threw her to the ground, but she got back up rather easily.

"Nice try, kid. Use Leech Life, Zubat!" the woman snickered.

" _With pleasure,_ " Zubat snarled as she once again dove for me, practically drooling at the thought of sinking her fangs into me.

I shuddered, and cried out as she struck my arm. I waved it wildly, trying to shake her off. No such luck; she hung on stubbornly.

"Quick, Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress swiftly ordered.

I was only too glad to obey, for I was starting to lose feeling in my arm, as the blood was being drained from it. I flung Zubat away from me, and shook my arm, trying to get some feeling back into it. Dimly, I registered that the old man was saying something into a walkie-talkie, but I couldn't make out what he was saying.

"Use Bite, now!" the woman ordered as Zubat slowly took to the air again. She seemed tired. That was good; it meant we were closer to rescuing Emily's dad.

"Counter with Confusion, like in Oreburgh!" Mistress shouted.

I knew exactly what she was thinking. I focused my invisible field to a few feet in front of me. Anything that would enter it would be trapped inside. Zubat flew right into it, and though the backlash from her momentum made me stumble for a second, I kept my grip iron-tight.

"What?" Zubat's Trainer exclaimed in disbelief as I tossed her Pokemon up into the air.

This time, when Zubat landed on the ground in a heap, she struggled to get up. Beads of sweat were forming on her face, and her teeth were clenched. Both Mistress and I sensed victory near, and she commanded that I finish Zubat off with another Confusion.

"Toxic," the woman stated flatly and coldly.

Zubat grimly looked up at me, and sprayed a large stream of purple liquid from her mouth all over me as I picked her up with my attack. The fumes from the attack were making me feel so very, _very_ nauseous. I felt sick; my stomach was beginning to tie itself in knots.

I threw Zubat down on the ground, then I sat down, feeling more and more ill as the seconds went on by.

"Ralts, you alright? What's wrong?" Mistress fretted as the woman recalled her unconscious Zubat.

"It's been poisoned by Toxic, and it'll keep getting sicker if you don't have an Antidote," the hunter replied gravely.

Mistress hurriedly dug into her bag for one of the Antidotes she got a few days ago. She gave the bottle to me, and I dully downed the medicine. It tasted like strawberries, I noticed with faint pleasure. A second later, I began to feel the sickness go away. My stomach returned to normal, and I felt much better.

"Hmph. You've beaten my Zubat, congratulations. But I still have one more Pokemon left," the woman smirked as she sent out her last Pokemon.

It was a fat, sour-faced Pokemon that looked like it needed both a diet and someone who loved it. Honestly, her eyes were bigger than her own paws. I didn't even know Pokemon could get that fat.

"Ugh, that thing is _hideous!_ " Mistress murmured as she pulled out her Pokedex.

" **Purugly, the Tiger Cat Pokemon, and the evolved form of Glameow. It binds its body with its tails to make itself look bigger. If it locks eyes, it will glare ceaselessly."**

"Wait, Glameow evolves into _that_?!" Mistress demanded incredulously.

Purugly stared imposingly at me. I froze, mesmerized by those disdainful eyes. I could tell that she was much too strong for me; there was no _way_ I could get over that glare!

"Let me take care of Purugly. Ralts might be too weak after that battle and Toxic," the hunter suggested, taking a step closer to the lady.

Mistress was going to say no, but a look from me had her nodding wordlessly. I knew I wasn't strong enough to take on Purugly. Though the poison was gone, I did not feel up to another battle so soon.

"Thank you. Serperior?" the hunter invited.

Serperior slithered wordlessly towards Purugly as I went back to Mistress' side. Serperior gave me a small nod as we passed each other. My eyes widened in surprise. I had the distinct sense that he was acknowledging my triumph over Zubat. From a much more experienced Pokemon like him, this meant a lot to me.

Next time we came across the hunter, I would not lose to him again.

"What's that Pokemon?" the lady asked as Serperior stared regally down at Purugly, who didn't even flinch. The two became engrossed in some silent battle with just their eyes. Neither of them looked away.

"A Serperior, from the Unova region. Be cautious, Mars. I have the feeling that this boy is very strong," the old man cautioned, speaking for the first time ever. He had a nasally voice, one that I would be perfectly fine never hearing again.

"Shut up; I don't care. Team Galactic will always triumph," the lady scolded.

"Wait, your name is _Mars_? Like the planet?" Mistress asked, a grin tugging at her face. The lady—Mars?—rolled her eyes.

"Yes, like the planet. Can we get on with it already?"

Mistress burst out laughing, chortling and guffawing until her face was red and she couldn't breath. Even the hunter had a small, amused smile on his face. Mistress finally managed to get a hold of herself, giggling to herself repeatedly.

"That is _great_ ," she giggled.

"Okay I'm done with this. Purugly, Scratch!" Mars commanded.

" _Finally,_ " Purugly grumbled before springing into action. Plump as she was, I was surprised by how quick and agile she moved.

"Gastro Acid!" the hunter ordered.

"Dodge!"

Serperior spat out orange liquid at the incoming Purugly, who nimbly leaped out of the way and cruelly raked her claws all down Serperior's side. To my shock, Serperior actually _winced_. It was a very good thing I had stepped down. If Purugly could make even Serperior show emotion, I would have been a goner from the start.

"Not bad. Serperior, use Leaf Tornado!" the hunter commanded.

Serperior recovered quickly, and once again wound up a mini-tornado and threw it at Purugly.

"Dodge it again!" Mars commanded.

But she was too late to say the command; the tornado was on Purugly in no time at all. The rotund Pokemon was enveloped completely by the attack, and she soon disappeared into a cloud of swirling leaves.

To everyone minus Mars' shock, Purugly had _survived_ the attack. Granted, there were lacerations and bruises all over her, and she was breathing heavily, her knees trembling, but she was still standing.

"What?" the hunter demanded. Mistress was quite satisfied at seeing the shock on his face. I, on the other hand, was doubly glad I wasn't the one fighting Purugly.

"Nice try, but no. Purugly, use Feint Attack!" Mars gloated, crossing her arms smugly.

" _I...will_ beat _you...if it's the last thing I do…"_ Purugly panted at Serperior before dashing towards him. Despite it all, I was impressed by her stamina.

"Leaf Tornado, again!" the hunter ordered.

" _Submit!"_ Serperior hissed angrily as he began whirling up another tornado around his tail.

He threw the attack at Purugly, who feinted to the left, then dashed the opposite way, barreling into Serperior. Serperior made a choked sound as he and Purugly slid across the floor. Then both he and the hunter _smiled_.

"Wrap," the hunter smiled victoriously. Mars gasped as Serperior quickly bound Purugly in his long, thin tail. He held onto her tightly as she struggled vehemently.

"Get out of there, Purugly!" Mars snapped.

Serperior only responded by squeezing Purugly harder and harder, until she let out a cry and went limp. Serperior released her, where she tumbled onto the floor, defeated.

"Yes!" Mistress and I cheered. We did it! We'd won!

Mars recalled her Purugly, then grinned viciously. She pulled out a long, black stick with a red button on the top.

"Congratulations. You beat me. You won. But you won't live long to celebrate. Do it!" she said, the latter part to the old man.

With a laugh, he pressed a button on his laptop, and bars immediately slid over the windows, and the door above us.

"What are you doing?! Now we're trapped in here," Mistress demanded.

"The emergency lock for the plant's been activated. The only escape is from the fire exit, up there," Mars pointed to a small trapdoor in the ceiling above the catwalk. The catwalk was strangely devoid of all the guards we had fought earlier.

"Why are you telling us this?" the hunter asked coldly. Mars smiled.

"Because I will blow this place up if you don't let us escape. See the thing I'm holding? It's a detonator. One touch, one little press of this button, and everyone goes boom. So, what will it be?" she invited.

"You're lying," Mistress shook her head.

"She's not. They were planting bombs everywhere as they were bringing me here. She's telling the truth," Emily's father piped up nervously. Mars nodded.

"He's right. And while we were battling, Charon was telling our members to evacuate. So now that everyone's on the same page, we're going to walk out of here. And you two are going to sit there and let us do it. Or else," she threatened, keeping one finger on top of the detonator.

Me, Mistress, the hunter, and Serperior each exchanged a look. Mars didn't know I knew Teleport, but we had to keep up the charade.

"Fine. Go on, then," Mistress said through clenched teeth. Mars smiled triumphantly.

"Excellent! I knew you had it in you," she said as she and the old man carefully made their way past us, up the stairs, and through the door in the ceiling. A harsh, dull sound came from the other side of the exit, like something heavy was pushed on top of it.

Emily's father burst into tears.

"They're going to kill us. They've trapped us in here; there's no way they're just going to let us go!" he sobbed.

The hunter recalled Serperior. "Don't worry. Alanna's Ralts knows Teleport; that's how we got in here. We're going to be okay. Is there anyone else in here?"

"No, today's Saturday; I'm the only one here. I had to stay and monitor the plant," Emily's father shook his head.

"That makes this much easier, then. Everyone hold hands with Ralts. Ralts, you ready?" Mistress asked me as the others took my hands. I nodded, determined to get everyone out safely.

I closed my eyes, and willed my power to surround us all. Now that I knew how to Teleport more than one person, it was much easier for me to Teleport everyone outside the building. One minute we were inside the power plant, the next we were right outside the front entrance.

I fell to the ground, panting hard. It might have been easier to transport everyone, but the aftermath was still draining. Mistress picked me up as the hunter shouted for everyone to run.

"Daddy?" Emily came out of the bushes as we sprinted as far away from the building as possible.

"Emily!" her father swooped her right off her feet as we ran past her.

Once we were some distance away, we flattened ourselves along the ground, preparing for any flying debris. Behind us, a rumbling sound came from the Windworks, then a deafening roar screamed through my eardrums. I hurriedly clapped my hands over my ears in a vain attempt to escape from the roar. A shockwave reverberated through the area, and a wave of heat passed over us all. Thankfully, we were far enough away that we weren't overly hurt by the effects of the explosion.

Once everything settled down, we cautiously stood up to look at the aftermath.

It was horrible. There was absolutely nothing left of the windworks; just pieces of rubble. Most of the windmills had been obliterated, and the earth was stripped bare of vegetation. A few fires were starting to sprout from the wreckage. There was a distinct ringing sound in my ears as well.

"E-everyone alright?" Emily's father asked, holding Emily close to him.

"My ears are ringing, but other than that I'm fine," the hunter reported, grimacing. Emily and I agreed.

"Alanna? How are you?" the hunter asked Mistress. She said nothing, only reached into her pockets, pulled out her hearing aids, and put them in her ears.

"What's that you said?" she asked.

"Wait, you're deaf?" the hunter raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Yup. I wasn't about to damage what little hearing I have left with that explosion. Even then, I _still_ heard it," she remarked.

I spotted something in the sky.

" _What's that?_ " I asked, pointing to a black spot that was slowly getting smaller and smaller. The humans tensed.

"That must be their helicopter," Emily's father said angrily.

"Well I'm not about to let them get away for trying to kill us all!" Mistress shouted as she began running after it.

"Alanna, what are you doing?!" the hunter called after her. She didn't answer, just kept on running.

* * *

Mistress chased the helicopter for a solid hour before she collapsed onto the ground from sheer exhaustion. I followed suit soon, having to to chase _her_ while _she_ was chasing the helicopter. We'd ran through a small cliffside, past Trainers and Pokemon alike. Even when Mistress lost sight of the helicopter, she stubbornly kept going, following the sound, and then the direction it was heading in once she was unable to hear it anymore.

I lay there on the ground, panting weakly. My legs and lungs were on fire; I didn't feel like I'd ever be back to normal!

After who knows how long, I managed to roll over to look at the sky. The sun was setting fast; night would soon befall us. I looked to the left and right of me, but there was no sign of an inn or anywhere we could spend the night. Unless we wanted to trek all the way back to Floaroma, we'd have to sleep outdoors. I'd done it all my life, so I wasn't worried in the slightest. There were few clouds in the sky, so I doubted there'd be rain. If we could just find a place to set up camp, we'd be fine.

I heard Mistress groan, then she sat up. She looked around, then sighed, resting her head on her knees.

"I'm such an idiot. Chasing a helicopter on foot is _totally_ a thing. Why do I have to be so pigheaded? Oh well, nothing I can do about that now. Looks like we're sleeping outdoors, Ralts. My legs feel like jelly; I don't think I can walk back to Floaroma," she sighed. I agreed with her on the jelly legs.

Once we could walk again, we set about making out camp. There was a small indent in part of the cliff wall facing us, so we decided to set up in there. Mistress gathered wood for a fire while I tried to find some food. Down below us on the grass were a few berry patches, so I Teleported back and forth from the cliff to the ground and back.

Mistress got a small fire going, and me, her, and Shinx ate a rather small meal of the berries I gathered. After dinner, Mistress snuggled into her sleeping bag while Shinx and I lay down on beds of leaves.

The crackling of the fire next to me was quite soothing, and the warmth radiating from it was like a cozy blanket. I fell asleep in no time.

* * *

 **I might have to start splitting up the posts. 30 pages is a helluva read for you guys, and arduous for me to write. Perhaps I'll make Gym Battles and Galactic battles (hah) into their own separate posts...**

 **The next much-shorter post shall include: Eterna Forest at night, and a new friend.**


	6. Magical Leaves and Eternal Forests

Alanna (F/14): Money: $528 Badges: 1

Ralts (F): Trace/Synchronise

Moves: Growl, Confusion, Teleport

Shinx (M): Intimidate/Rivalry

Moves: Tackle

* * *

 _Day 5_

* * *

Breakfast was a sad affair. Mistress only had a granola bar in her backpack, so she split it between herself, me, and Shinx. We ate our pitiful meal in silence, then Mistress recalled Shinx and we peered out of the cave.

It was a sunny day today, with clouds looming in the distance. I frowned at them, hoping they weren't rainclouds. Hopefully we would reach Eterna City before rain could fall.

"I hope Emily and her dad are doing okay...There's no reason for us to go back to Floaroma, so we might as well continue on to Eterna," Mistress observed, putting her hands on her hips.

" _Let's hurry. I think rain might come later_ ," I suggested.

"Oh I hope not. In that case we'd better get going," Mistress agreed, looking up at the sky.

She rolled up her sleeping bag and tied it to her backpack. We headed north, staying on top of the small cliff in case we needed shelter on the chance we happened to be caught by rain.

We didn't see many Pokemon as we walked along. We spotted a small flock of Starly in the sky at one point, and I thought I saw a Pachirisu down on the ground below, but other than that it was quiet.

Around midday, we came upon a young woman doing strange exercises on top of a bridge along with a short gray Pokemon. The river ran lazily below, adding its peaceful sound to the otherwise silent day.

"Hello, might I pass?" Mistress inquired as we approached the woman and her Pokemon. She had blonde hair, and wore short orange clothes.

The woman looked at us, and grinned.

"Sure, but only if you can beat us in a battle! Machop and I have been training all morning, and we're eager for a fight!" she declared.

Mistress was startled at first, but glee soon replaced her feeling. She was eager for a battle, too.

"Deal. I'm Alanna, and I say I'm crossing this bridge!"

"Name's Kelsey. And I'm the one who will be preventing your crossing!" the woman smirked.

"Beat 'em up, Machop!" Kelsey shouted as Machop scurried onto the bridge.

" **Machop, the Superpower Pokemon. Though small in stature, it is powerful enough to easily heft and throw a number of Geodude at once,"** Mistress' Pokedex informed us when Mistress pulled it out.

"A fighting-type, huh? This shouldn't be too hard. Ralts, go!" Mistress mused.

I ran in front of her, preparing to fight. Machop and I stared each other down. We were fighting on a bridge with no rails, so I'd have to be careful not to fall into the water. The current wasn't fast enough to be dangerous, but I didn't know how shallow it was.

"I'll go first. Machop, Karate Chop!" Kelsey shouted boisterously, pumping her fist into the air.

Machop's right hand glowed white, and with a shout he jumped high into the air, Before I could blink, he bore down on me fast, striking my left shoulder with his outstretched palm. I sucked in a breath, wincing as a sharp pain raced through my arm. Machop jumped back before I could retaliate.

"Confusion!" Mistress commanded.

As the ache in my arm started to fade, I concentrated my power to take hold of Machop. I lifted him up into the air.

" _H-hey! Put me down!_ " he squeaked, struggling to free himself.

I did as he requested.

He landed with an audible " _Oof!_ " on the wooden bridge. He got to his feet, scowling at me.

"Don't give in, Machop! Focus Energy!" Kelsey encouraged, getting into a fighting stance.

" _As you wish,_ " Machop said, He flexed his arms, and presently a red outline surrounded him.

"Karate Chop, again!" Kelsey shouted.

"Teleport!" Mistress countered.

Before Machop could strike me with his hand again, I willed myself to warp behind him. I disappeared right as he landed on the ground. I reappeared a second later as he paused in confusion, wondering where I had went.

"Behind you, Machop!" "Confusion!" Kelsey and Mistress said at the same time.

Machop turned around in time to be picked up psychically. Like before, I dropped him to the ground. He lay face-first on the bridge, looking stunned. It appeared one more good hit and he would be down.

"Finish it off with Confusion!" Mistress shouted.

I came closer to him, sure in my victory. As I prepared to summon up my power, Machop swiftly grabbed my leg with his hand. I flinched at the unexpected motion, losing my concentration. Machop looked up at me with a wild grin, breathing heavily.

"Low Sweep!" Kelsey commanded.

Machop jerked his hand sharply, taking my leg with it. I fell clumsily to the ground, landing roughly on my arms.

The water below greeted me. My head was over the edge of the bridge. My eyes widened, and I quickly got back to my feet, acutely aware now of the mere inch between me and falling.

"Karate Chop!" Kelsey shouted triumphantly.

"Teleport, then Confusion!" Mistress countered.

I Teleported away from the edge as Machop bore down on me. Once more, I picked him up telekinetically and threw him down to the ground, taking care not to throw him into the river accidentally. He bounced once, crying out, then was still.

"Machop, return," Kelsey said, recalling him. She put her hands on her hips and smiled at us.

"Great job! That was a worthy fight. Machop and I will keep training, and next time we won't go easy on you!" she said as she handed Mistress $20.

"Neither will we. You two take care," Mistress grinned as we crossed the bridge.

"You alright, Ralts? Need a Potion?" she asked me a moment later.

" _I am fine,_ " I declined. The blows I had taken hadn't been particularly damaging.

"Okay. Just checking."

* * *

We came upon an inn a couple hours later, in front of a thick, dense forest. Mistress, like she had been yesterday, was loathe to waste half a day, but we weren't sure how long it would take us to get to Eterna City.

"Excuse me," she hailed a young girl who was playing with her Piplup nearby. "How long will it take to get to Eterna City from here?"

"Hm? Oh, if you keep following the path through Eterna Forest, you'll get there by nightfall," she told us.

"Thanks," Mistress nodded as we turned to enter the forest.

"But first, would you like to have a battle? My family's staying here but it's soooooo boring! A battle would make this vacation more fun," the girl continued.

Mistress turned, shrugging.

"Sure. My Ralts versus your Piplup?" she invited.

The girl nodded. "Sounds good to me. I'm Karina, by the way."

"I'm Alanna. You can have the first move. Ralts, go!" Mistress directed.

"Alright! Piplup, go!" Karina shouted.

Piplup and I stood valiantly in front of our Trainers.

"Bubble!" Karina commanded.

" _Go forth, my Bubbles!"_ Piplup intoned as he spat multiple blue bubbles at me.

"Teleport out of the way!" Mistress ordered.

I willed my power to surround me, to take me behind Piplup. It obeyed without hindrance, and a second later I was between Piplup and Karina.

"Confusion!" Mistress followed up.

"Turn around and dodge it!" Karina yelled.

Too late, I was already lifting him up by the time Karina finished her sentence. I made him crash painfully to the ground.

Piplup swiftly returned to his feet, staring daggers at me.

"Peck, Piplup!" Karina ordered.

" _Right!_ " he shouted as his beak glowed white while he ran towards me.

"Growl!" Mistress countered.

I let out a piercing growl, causing Piplup to momentarily falter in his sprint towards me. He still Pecked me repeatedly, but his blows were half-hearted, and I wasn't actually too badly hurt from the attacks. I stumbled backwards a few steps, but I remained standing.

"Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

I regained my balance, but as I focused, Karina ordered Piplup to get out of the way. He did so, jumping away just as I activated my invisible hold.

"Bubble!" Karina continued.

This time, I was unable to evade the explosive bubbles. With a cry, I fell to the ground, having been knocked backwards by the force of the miniature explosions.

"You okay, Ralts?" Mistress fretted. I grimaced as I got painstakingly to my feet.

" _I am,_ " I said unevenly, getting into a defensive stance.

"Good. Confusion!" Mistress said.

I caught Piplup in my psychic grasp, and slammed him harshly against the ground. It took him a minute to get back up, and sweat was beading on his forehead.

I wasn't completely unscathed myself. I was starting to get tired, and there was a large bruise on my chest from where the Bubble attack had detonated.

"Just a little bit longer, Piplup! Peck!" Karina encouraged.

" _On it,_ " he wheezed as he raced towards me, his beak glowing white once more.

"Teleport out of the way!" Mistress responded.

I was too slow; Piplup was on me before I could will myself to Teleport.

" _Ah!_ " I shrieked as Piplup knocked me down. He Pecked my head repeatedly, sending multiple sharp pains through my skull.

I pushed him off of me, getting unsteadily to my feet. Both of us stared at each other, each breathing heavily.

"Confusion!" I heard Mistress shout.

"Dodge it!" Karina said in return.

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to push past my fatigue, delving swiftly into my mind and creating the familiar psychic hold before Piplup had time to react.

Ignoring my body's signals to take it easy, I held Piplup high into the air, then threw him down.

Piplup landed with a solid crash, and didn't get back up.

"Aw, boo!" Karina pouted, picking up her Piplup. He woke a second later, and grinned sheepishly.

I fellt to my knees, my body punishing me for my exertion with a particularly powerful wave of fatigue. Distantly, I registered that Karina was speaking.

"You did a great job, Piplup. I'm proud of you," she told him gently as she came to give us $11.

"Thanks for the battle! It was a lot of fun!" Karina laughed.

I heard footsteps, and presently I felt the soothing spray of a Potion on my skin. I sighed contentedly, feeling my aches and pains disappear. I stood up when Mistress was done, feeling much better.

'No problem. Glad it was exciting for you. I'll see you around sometime," Mistress waved as she turned to enter Eterna Forest.

"Take care!" Karina told us as I followed Mistress into Eterna Forest.

* * *

I was quite grateful that there was a path for us to follow, otherwise Mistress and I would have gotten lost at least a hundred times by the time we stopped for dinner, which consisted of berries that we'd spotted growing.

The forest was thick and dense with trees that grew close together, leaving very little room in between. Above us, the treetops shaded us, so that only the briefest slivers of sky could be seen. From the little sky I could see, clouds were swiftly moving in. I frowned to myself as I took a bite bite out of an Oran Berry, hoping that rain wasn't imminent.

After our unfulfilling meal, we started back down the path, where we soon came across a young woman wearing purple clothes. She paused upon seeing us, staring intently at me.

"Your Ralts...I sense its power," the woman said in an odd voice.

"Uh, thanks?" Mistress paused in her steps.

"May...may I battle you? I do sorely love psychic-types, and I'd like to see just how strong your Ralts is," the woman continued.

Mistress and I exchanged a glance. I shrugged, signaling my consent, and Mistress nodded at the woman.

"Ralts is okay with it, and so am I," she said. A large smile broke across the woman's face.

"Oh, thank you! You can have the first move. My name is Rachael, by the way," the woman introduced.

"I'm Alanna. We're not going to lose! Go, Ralts!" Mistress directed. I ran in front of her.

"Bring us to victory, Psyduck!" Rachael shouted, sending out a Psyduck.

" _Oh, what have we here?_ " Psyduck inquired, peering at me.

"Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress began.

"Dodge it!" Rachael commanded.

Psyduck leaped away before I could catch her with my psychic grasp.

"Tail Whip!" Rachael shouted.

Psyduck turned around and cutely waggled her tail at me. I relaxed a bit as I felt a smile form on my face. That little wag had been simply adorable!

"Fury Swipes!" Rachael followed up.

"Dodge!" I heard Mistress tell me. Eh?

As I was broken out of my brief reverie, Psyduck relentlessly scratched my head and face over and over again with her claws. Each blow was more painful than the last, and when she finished I was sent sprawling across the grass.

"Ralts! You alright?" Mistress called. I stood back up, nodding wordlessly. Those Fury Swipes were no joke; I'd have to be extra careful to avoid them…

"Good. Confusion!" Mistress breathed a sigh of relief.

I caught hold of Psyduck before her Trainer could tell her to evade. I lifted the chubby water-type up into the air, then released her, where she plummeted like a rock.

She landed on her round belly, bouncing once, briefly, before coming to a stop near Rachael, who fretted over her Pokemon. Psyduck got back up, telling her Trainer that she was fine.

"Glad that you're okay, Psyduck. Use Water Gun!" Rachael shouted, pointing at me.

" _Yes_!" Psyduck agreed as she spat a powerful stream of water from her bill and at me.

"Teleport!" Mistress responded.

I started to, but was hit by the blast before I could execute the maneuver. Somewhere in my mind, something clicked. I was knocked flat on my back, and I gasped and sputtered, trying to free my lungs of water.

Eventually, I could breathe again, and a strange power was tingling inside my head. The tingling sensation spread down my neck and through my arms, until it came to rest at my hands.

Upon impulse, I raised my hands above my head, then I brought them down forward, releasing the power collecting in my palms. To everyone's—including myself—utter astonishment, glowing light green leaves were released from my hands, where they flew straight for Psyduck.

She was too surprised to do anything but stand and stare, and the sharp leaves whipped at her body. With a loud shriek, she clutched at her wounds, wincing intensely.

"Wow! That was Magical Leaf! Impressive!" Rachael whistled, her eyes glowing. Even though I was her enemy, she seemed proud.

"Ralts learned a new move? So soon after the last one? ...Screw it, I'll take it. Ralts, Magical Leaf, again!" Mistress commanded.

"Confusion!" Rachael countered.

While I was trying to see if I could replicate the attack, Psyduck generated a light blue outline. I felt an invisible field take hold of me and start to lift me up into the air. Hey! This was _my_ attack!

" _Stop that!_ " I exclaimed, trying to move my body. No such luck; Psyduck's hold prevented me from moving my body. I was forced to do nothing as Psyduck made me slam into the ground.

I let out a large gasp, the breath knocked right out of my lungs. I lay there for a long moment, wheezing pitifully.

"Ralts! Are you alright?" Mistress asked worriedly.

" _Ahh…_ " was all I could say.

Eventually, with much effort, I stood back up. My knees were trembling, and the edges of my vision were slightly blurry. My only consolation was that Psyduck looked no better than I.

"Fury Swipes, Psyduck!" Rachael commanded.

" _Hopefully this'll end it!_ " Psyduck made a face as she started racing towards me.

"Magical Leaf!" Mistress commanded.

I reached into my mind, where I felt the strange power originate. I directed it to travel down to my hands, and I raised my arms above my head. As I brought them down, the motion released the power gathering at my fingertips. The power released itself as the glowing green leaves that zoomed forward.

Psyduck was lacerated repeatedly by the enchanted leaves, and with a cry she fell over onto her back. Despite Rachael's pleas, she refused to stand back up.

"Darn it! I thought for sure we would win!" Rachael stormed, stomping her foot on the ground. Then she sighed, recalling Psyduck. "Oh well, it happens. That was a great fight. Your Ralts is very powerful." she said as she gave Mistress $17.

"Thanks. Better luck next time," Mistress encouraged, kneeling down to administer a Potion for the second time that day. I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as the medicine healed my scrapes and bruises. I think I had enough of battling today.

"Yep. Well, I'll be seeing you. Thanks again for the battle," Rachael nodded as she began walking off.

"Bye," Mistress said before we continued down the path.

* * *

As the evening wore on into the night, we still saw no sign of the exit. I was getting nervous, and not only because the clouds overhead were dark and heavy with rain. Periodically, from out the corner of my eye, I thought I saw something move. But when I turned my head to look, nothing was there.

It was quite eerie, and I sensed that Mistress was feeling as unsettled as I was. Waves of apprehension were rolling off her like the tide, and her eyes were darting back and forth across the area.

"Ugh! Where is the exit?!" she hissed.

" _I don't know…_ " I said miserably.

Just then, I felt a drop of water hit my head. I looked up at the sky, only to be hit by another drop. Then another, and another, until soon we were drenched in rain.

"How the hell could I have forgotten to pack an umbrella?! Damn it!" Mistress shouted angrily after rummaging through her backpack, trying in vain to cover her head with her arms.

We both heard a deep, sinister giggle coming from the bushes next to us. Two glowing red eyes became illuminated in the darkness of the forest.

"Nope! Not dealing with this!" Mistress declared as she sprinted down the path, splashing nosily through the growing puddles.

" _Wait up!_ " I called after her as I began to follow.

We ran down the path, which was becoming harder and harder to see through the downpour. Ahead of me, I heard a sudden shriek.

" _Mistress!_ " I shouted as I ran to the sound. I barely managed to stop myself from tumbling down a small but steep ravine. The path turned sharply to the right, in front of the ravine. Mistress must have accidentally fallen down.

I Teleported myself to the bottom, where I found Mistress lying in a wet and muddy heap.

"Ow," she winced as she picked herself up, grimacing as she did so.

"I officially hate this place," she sighed, resting her forehead against her knees, ignoring the rain. "Could you look for my hearing aid, Ralts? One came loose when I fell."

"Look for what?" an unknown voice said nearby. I turned to see a human boy around Mistress' age standing a few yards away, holding a blue umbrella.

He had short dark blue hair, and eyes the color of one of the gemstones from the Oreburgh museum. Which one was it...Ah! Sapphire. He wore dark clothes, and through the rain it was hard to discern the details. He looked concerned, and he came forward to help Mistress stand up. He didn't seem to mind that she was wet and covered in mud.

"Thanks. Ah, my hearing aid. Something scared me and I fell down the cliff and one came out," Mistress explained after checking to make sure her ankles still worked.

"It was probably a ghost-type that spooked you. I'll help you look," the boy offered as he and I knelt down and began searching through the mud.

After a minute of searching, I found it buried under an inch of mud. I handed it to Mistress, who grimaced at the sight of it.

"I highly doubt I can use that one again, but once we finally get to a Pokemon Center I'll try and fix it."

"Do you have any spares with you?" the boy inquired, holding his umbrella over us.

Mistress nodded. "Yeah, always. I'll be alright; I just need to get out of this damn rain."

"You're actually not too far away from Eterna City. I could lead you out of the forest if you'd like," the boy offered. Mistress was wary, but I did not sense any hostile feelings from the boy. I gave her a short, subtle nod.

She relaxed. "That'd be great, actually. My name's Alanna, and this is Ralts. What are you doing all the way out here?"

The boy smiled. "Nice to meet you both. I'm Tyler. I came out here because there was a certain plant I wanted to see. Follow me and take a look." he invited.

Mistress shrugged and agreed. We followed Tyler for a few minutes before we arrived at a small open space. A Budew and Turtwig were shielding themselves from the rain under a tree, and they looked up at our approach.

"I'm back, everyone. This is Alanna and Ralts," Tyler introduced. We met up with the two Pokemon under the tree.

"These are my Pokemon: my Turtwig, Terra, and my Budew, Linnéa," Tyler told us.

"Hello," " _Hi!_ " Mistress and I greeted.

" _Good evening,_ " Terra said politely, dipping his head once.

Linnéa only cast a bored, disinterested glance at us before staring at the dark sky.

Tyler stood next to a clump of tall flowers almost as tall as I was. The petals were white, with patches of maroon unevenly distributed.

"Night phlox only bloom at night. I'm studying botany, so that's why I came to see it," Tyler explained.

"They're pretty," Mistress said appreciatively. I nodded in agreement, standing on the tips of my toes to smell the multicolored flowers.

"I'm done here, so I'll lead you two to Eterna City. It's only about fifteen minutes away," Tyler continued, coming back to the tree to grab a backpack. He slung it over his shoulders, and recalled his Pokemon.

"Awesome. Thank you," Mistress said as Tyler unfurled his umbrella.

Mistress and Tyler chatted during the walk. She stood to the right, so that her aided ear was closer to him. The rain had lessened enough that the outlines of the trees were visible once more. As we ambled down the path, Mistress explained how we were from Hoenn, and that we sought to tackle the Pokemon League. Tyler then told us that he was from the far, far north, where it snowed for most of the year. He'd always been fascinated by plants, since there weren't that many up north, and so he wanted to see the various flora there was to be found in the rest of Sinnoh.

"If I may ask, do you know sign language?" he asked unexpectedly.

Mistress nodded. "I do, although I wasn't born deaf. I got meningitis when I was a toddler, which destroyed most of my hearing. So, my parents thought it'd be best for me and them to learn it in case there was a reason I couldn't communicate verbally."

"That's really fascinating. What would your name look like, then?" Tyler inquired.

"A," Mistress began, holding up her hand in a closed fist. Her thumb was parallel to her fingers.

"L," she continued, sticking out her thumb and index finger so that they were perpendicular with one another.

"A," she made the closed fist again.

"N," she went on, closing her fist again and putting her thumb in between her ring and middle finger.

"N," she echoed, repeating the gesture.

"A," she finished, making a closed fist.

As she did the gestures, Tyler copied her movements, studying her hand intensely.

"But normally I shorthand it to this," she added, closing her fist and wiping it vertically on her chin. "It's essentially 'a' and 'red' combined."

"I see. How would you spell my name?" Tyler asked after copying the movement.

"This is T. Don't shake your fist while you're doing it, or else you'll be saying 'toilet' instead," Mistress began, closing her fist and putting her thumb between her index finger and middle finger.

"Y," still closing her fist, she stuck out her pinkie and thumb.

"L," she made the perpendicular-thumb-and-index motion.

"E," she opened her fist somewhat, and put her fingers on top of her horizontal thumb.

"And r," she finished, closing her fist again and crossing her index and middle fingers.

She helped Tyler practice until he got the motions down.

"That's really something. Thank you for showing me," he smiled at her. She smiled back.

"Anytime."

Pretty soon, we began walking past an old, ancient mansion. The lights were off inside, but I could have sworn I saw something move in one of the windows.

"Ah, finally, some shelter," Mistress breathed a sigh of relief. Tyler gave her a terrified look.

"That place is supposed to be haunted! Let's not go inside," he exclaimed. "Besides, we're almost out of the forest."

Mistress groaned, but agreed.

Tyler hadn't been kidding. Not two minutes later the forest opened up to a timeworn city. I yawned loudly. Mistress and I had been walking all day; I hadn't realized until now how tired I was.

He led us to the Pokemon Center, where Mistress checked in at the desk. I stumbled along after her as she and Tyler walked up to the second floor. The humans said goodnight to each other, and Mistress opened the door to our room.

I flopped down on the bed immediately, already falling asleep.

The last thing I remembered was Mistress telling me she'd be in the bathroom washing the mud off of her.

* * *

 **Now you know how to spell 'Alanna' and 'Tyler' in ASL. Congrats XD**

 **The next post will include: a champion, and Gym puzzles.**


	7. Eterna City Gym

Alanna (F/14) Money:$576 Badges: 1

-Ralts (F): Trace/Synchronize

Moves: Growl, Confusion, Teleport, Magical Leaf

-Shinx (M): Intimidate/Rivalry

Moves: Tackle

Tyler (M/14) Money: $104

-Turtwig "Terra" (M): Overgrow

Moves: Tackle, Absorb, Withdraw, Razor Leaf

-Budew "Linnéa" (F): Poison Point/Natural Cure

Moves: Worry Seed, Mega Drain, Stun Spore, Water Sport

* * *

 _Day 6_

* * *

We met Tyler for breakfast next morning. Mistress wanted to repay him for leading us out of Eterna Forest. He tried to decline, saying it was no big deal, but Mistress insisted. Now that it was day, I could see him more clearly.

He had short dark blue hair and equally blue eyes, which contrasted strikingly against his pale skin. He wore an unzipped gray jacket on top of a black shirt. Around his neck was a dark gray scarf, and he also wore jeans and black hiking boots.

"You really don't have to," he attempted to decline again, but Mistress wouldn't hear it.

"Nonsense. Now come on, I'm starving," she said, walking towards the front door of the Pokemon Center.

Tyler sighed, but raced to catch up with her. I followed after them.

"Fine, fine. I know a good place to eat that's cheap too," Tyler said as Mistress reached the door.

She paused, and turned back to look at him, a large smile on her face. "Oh, you've finally come around, have you?" she teased. "In that case, lead on!"

She flung open the door and began to skip outside, but instead bumped into a tall blonde woman wearing all black.

"Oh! So sorry, I didn't see you!" Mistress apologized as she stepped back from the woman.

The blonde lady looked down at us with a kind smile. She was holding some sort of container that held...an Egg? Tyler gasped when he saw the lady.

"Don't worry about it. It's nice to see Trainers as yourself so excited to start the day. My name is Cynthia," the woman laughed gently, entering the Pokemon Center.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Alanna. And this is Ralts, my starter, " Mistress introduced, putting a hand on my head.

I looked up at the woman in wonder. There was a powerful, powerful aura emanating from her. But I sensed no evil. Whoever this woman was, she was important.

"You're...You're the _Champion_!" Tyler gaped, his jaw completely open. I was distinctly reminded of a Magikarp.

Mistress' eyes widened. "You are?!"

Cynthia laughed. "Yes, I am! But please, don't start treating me like royalty. I'm just a Trainer like you too."

"Ah, ah, I'm Tyler!" Tyler fumbled, remembering his manners. He and Cynthia shook hands.

"Pleasure to meet you. So, what are two Trainers like you two doing?" Cynthia inquired.

"We're about to have breakfast, and then Ralts and I are going to challenge the Eterna City Gym for our second badge. One day we'll face you in battle, Cynthia," Mistress explained with a confident smile.

"Ah, I can tell you're a courageous one. I look forward to that day, Alanna. I sense that you and your Ralts have a close bond. Hmm…" Cynthia paused, then seemed to come to a decision.

"I hate to spring this on you so suddenly, but…" she looked down at the Egg she was carrying with a sheepish smile. "I found this abandoned Egg on my travels across Sinnoh. Unfortunately, my life is too busy to properly take care of an Egg. Would...would you do me a huge favor and take care of it for me?"

The Champion herself was _asking_ us to do this. She had a hopeful look in her eyes, like we might refuse. I was awed by her humbleness. She could have easily ordered us to take the Egg, but here she was acting...normal.

When Mistress and I would eventually face her, I would honor Cynthia by making her _struggle_ to defend her title. I would grace her with the battle of her life. It was the least I could do.

Mistress was surprised, but accepted. She would not disrespect the Champion by refusing, and she was curious as to what kind of Egg it was. It was white, with red and blue triangles towards the bottom.

"Thank you so much, I _really_ appreciate it," Cynthia gave us a grateful smile. "I must go now, but I hope to see you three again soon."

She walked past us towards the front desk, and we walked outside.

"That was _amazing!_ Who would have thought that Cynthia would be here? On this _day_?!" Tyler marveled as he led us somewhere.

"She acted so...normal," Mistress admired thoughtfully, looking down at her new Egg.

" _She is worthy of her title,_ " I agreed, thinking about the powerful aura I'd sensed from her.

Tyler led us to a cozy little diner that smelled of cinnamon. It seemed to be quite popular, as most of the seats were already full even though it was still early in the day.

Our server, a petite woman with neon pink hair, led us to one of the few remaining booths. Tyler and Mistress ordered their food, and ordered food for their Pokemon too.

" _Hello Ralts,"_ Tyler's Turtwig, Terra, greeted me politely as he was released.

" _Good morning,_ " I said back.

"Just one bowl for my Turtwig," Tyler told our waitress, who went off to relay their orders.

Tyler rummaged through his black backpack until he pulled out a can of Pokemon food. He opened it up, and gave it to his Budew, Linnéa. She ate it slowly with a disgruntled look on her face.

"Linnéa refuses to eat anything other than that brand," he told us sheepishly.

" _I hate it the least,_ " Linnéa grumbled.

"Is it okay? It looks annoyed," Mistress observed.

Tyler sighed. "I've had Lin for a few weeks now, and I have _never_ seen her smile. Ever. No matter what I do, she always looks as if she's having the worst day of her life. Through extensive trial-and-error, though, I've found a couple things she likes."

Linnéa paused in her eating to glare at him.

"Tolerates," Tyler amended. "Anyway, you said you're taking on the Pokemon League challenge, right? How many badges do you have?"

"Just one so far," Mistress said as the food arrived. The waitress placed three heaping bowls of food in front of us Pokemon, and we all dug in happily.

"Today I'm hoping to get my second. I'll be facing grass-types, I believe."

"Yup. Gardenia's Pokemon are pretty tough," Tyler nodded through a mouthful of pancake.

"You know the Gym Leader?" Mistress raised an eyebrow.

"Gardenia and I are grass-type Trainers; naturally I'd visit her Gym. To admire her Pokemon and plants, of course. I'm not interested in collecting Gym badges. We spent most of yesterday talking about all things plant-related."

"How many will she use?"

"Three."

Mistress groaned. "I only have two. And Shinx refuses to listen to me, so I basically just have one."

Terra, Tyler's Turtwig, looked at Tyler with a meaningful glance. Tyler saw.

"You know...you could borrow Linnéa and Terra for your battle. If you want," he said shyly, staring into his plate.

"You...really mean that? Even though we only met twelve hours ago?" Mistress frowned.

"Sure. One of the few things Linnéa enjoys is battling, and Terra likes you," Tyler said, nodding at his Turtwig, who was leaning up against Mistress' ankle.

I looked at the two grass-types, swallowing the last of my food. It would be nice to have some of the pressure taken off of me, as I was the only reliable one on Mistress' team. And I didn't mind these two's company, even if Linnéa was a little cold.

Mistress felt awkward borrowing Pokemon, but it was the best option we had. Catching and training two new Pokemon would take time, and Mistress was impatient.

"Uh, sure. Thank you so much. For all you've done," she agreed after a moment's thought.

"No problem. I've actually never seen a Gym battle before; this will be fun. Now, Terra's moves are Tackle, Withdraw, Absorb, and Razor Leaf. Like all grass-type starters, he has the Overgrow Ability. He's not the fastest, but he can dish it out as well as take it. Linnéa's moves are Worry Seed, Stun Spore, Water Sport, and Mega Drain. She has Poison Point, which poisons upon contact, and Natural Cure, which alleviates any status effects she has when she is switched out. She's more of a speedy tank than a fighter," Tyler lectured.

He turned to his two Pokemon. "You two listen to Alanna, okay?"

" _I will_ ," Terra agreed amiably.

" _Whatever,_ " Linnéa grumbled.

* * *

After breakfast, Tyler escorted us to the Eterna City Gym, which was only a few minutes' walk from the Pokemon Center. It was shaped like a dome, with a plethora of flowers and ivy growing all over the front yard and walls.

"Yup, a grass-type user definitely lives here," Mistress said as she opened the front door.

Inside the Gym lay a giant room. I couldn't see much of the interior, as tall elms surrounded us on the left and right, preventing me from discerning what all lay inside. The walls were painted sky blue, with puffy clouds dancing across the landscape. In the center of the room, however, lay a giant contraption. I could see a leaf-shaped bridge leading up to a metal flower in the center, but its purpose I could not for the life of me tell. A young girl stood near the contraption.

An old woman in a white smock and a sunhat approached us.

"Welcome to the Eterna Gym. I am the referee, Bernice," she introduced. "Hello again, Tyler."

"I'm Alanna, and I am here to challenge the Gym Leader," Mistress said formally.

"I see. If you wish to do so, then you must first defeat Lady Gardenia's students, who are dispersed all around this room. In order to gain access to the other two students, you must first defeat Caroline over there," Bernice directed, pointing to the young girl.

We approached the girl, Mistress handing her Egg to Tyler.

"Hi Tyler! Hi challenger! I'm Caroline. You'll have to beat me if you wanna face Gardenia!" Caroline giggled, grabbing a Pokeball.

"I'm Alanna, and I accept," Mistress grinned.

"Each opponent shall use two Pokemon. Let the match begin!" Bernice declared, taking up a position to the side.

"Come on out, Cherubi!" Caroline gushed, sending out a small pink Pokemon that looked similar to a pair of cherries.

"Cherubi, huh?" Mistress muttered as she pulled out her Pokedex.

" **Cherubi, the Cherry Pokemon. The small ball is not only filled with nutrients, it is also tasty. Starly try to peck it off,"** her Pokedex chirped.

"I see. Go, Terra!" Mistress called, sending out Tyler's Turtwig.

" _Present,"_ he said upon being summoned.

" _Make Mistress proud!"_ I called to him, trying not to be hurt that she chose him over me. Mistress wasn't used to fighting with Terra, and she wanted to get to know him and his battle style better. Still, though, it stung.

"Tackle!" Mistress commanded.

" _On it,_ " Terra said, breaking into a jog as he rushed towards Cherubi.

At least he was as slow as I was. No, that was a mean thought. I should not be spiteful; he _was_ trying to help Mistress, after all, even though she was not his Trainer.

"Dodge it!" Caroline ordered. Cherubi dodged easily, and at her own Trainer's command she slammed into Terra with her own Tackle.

" _Ah!_ " Terra cried as he slid sideways across the grass. He got back up easily, seemingly unhurt—just startled—from the blow.

"Terra's defense and physical attack are its best traits. Cherubi is best at special defense, but its physical defense is nothing to sneeze at as well," Tyler said behind us.

Mistress nodded. "Good to know. Terra, Tackle, again!"

This time, Cherubi could not dodge in time, and with a cry she was sent sprawling across the landscape until a tree stopped her travel. She winced visibly, probably from the long slide across the ground.

"Cherubi, are you okay?" Caroline fretted.

" _I'm fine,_ " she said, getting to her tiny little feet.

"Good. Tackle!" Caroline shouted. Cherubi broke out into a mad dash for Terra.

"Withdraw!" Mistress countered. Terra's shell was too small to allow him to retreat inside of it, but he did seem to shrink somewhat, shielding him from some of the force of Cherubi's blow. He rolled a few feet, then ceased his Withdrawal.

"Razor Leaf, quick!" Mistress urged.

Before Cherubi had a chance to jump away to a safe distance, Terra swiftly sent out multiple leaves from the stem on his head, all razor-sharp. The leaves lacerated Cherubi's pink skin, and with a pained hiss she fell onto her back, as helpless as a Magikarp on land.

"Tackle!" Mistress shouted triumphantly, sensing an easy win.

But as Terra drew in close, Caroline smiled coldly.

"Leech Seed," our opponent said.

To everyone's surprise, Cherubi jumped to her feet with a quick laugh. Her helplessness had all been a front, it seemed. She spat out a small brown seed at Terra, who was completely vulnerable to the attack. When the seed reached him, multiple vines sprang from the seed, covering Terra until he was ensnared within a vine-y net.

As he struggled to free himself, the vines emitted a red aura, and Terra wailed. The red aura flew to Cherubi, who smiled as she used Terra's energy to heal herself.

Mistress scowled. "No you don't. Terra, use Razor Leaf to cut yourself free."

" _Ah...with pleasure,_ " Terra winced, then did as she bade, using his sharp leaves to slash through the vines until he was able to climb out of the net. The vines fell to the ground, no longer animate.

"Wow! You managed to escape Cherubi's Leech Seed! But we're not done just yet. Cherubi, Tackle!" Caroline marveled.

" _Here I come!_ " Cherubi stormed as she rushed for Terra.

"Withdraw!" Mistress countered, slashing the air with her hand.

Once more, Terra seemed to shrink slightly into his shell, avoiding most of the damage. This time, Cherubi sprang away quickly, not wanting to fall for the same trap again.

She was tired. Although she jumped away from Terra, it had taken her a few moments to prepare herself. When she landed, a couple beads of sweat formed on her forehead. She did not look as perky as she did when the battle had begun.

Terra, meanwhile, looked as if he could go on all day, despite the blows he had taken. Tyler had said he was adept at enduring physical attacks, after all. And he must have freed himself from Leech Seed before the move had a chance to thoroughly weaken him.

He had this.

" _Just a little bit more! She's almost finished!_ " I encouraged.

"Tackle!" Mistress commanded.

Terra flashed me a quick grin before he raced after Cherubi.

"Dodge it!" Caroline called.

"Turn and Tackle it!" Mistress ordered.

Cherubi evaded, and Terra spun on his feet, using his momentum to propel him forward. Cherubi faltered, and thus marked her defeat. Terra crashed into her, sending them both careening into a tree. Cherubi fell to the ground, not moving. Terra, however, was fine. He used Cherubi's body to cushion himself from the crash, and as such he wasn't too worse for the wear.

I cheered.

"Hmph! You may have defeated my Cherubi, but let's see if you can beat Roselia!" Caroline stormed, returning Cherubi and calling out a green, rose-like Pokemon.

" _Time to battle?_ " she asked sweetly.

" **Roselia, the Thorn Pokemon, and the evolved form of Budew. The more healthy the Roselia, the more pleasant its flowers' aroma. Its scent deeply relaxes people,"** said Mistress' Pokedex.

"Ooh!" Tyler said approvingly, nodding. "Roselia's great at taking and dealing special attacks. Watch out for its Poison Point Ability, however."

"Hm. Terra, return," Mistress frowned, recalling Terra. To my utmost pleasure, she continued, "Go, Ralts."

My heart singing, I ran out to meet the green Pokemon, who gazed at me with a disarming smile.

"Ralts, Confusion!" Mistress began.

Eagerly, I willed my power to form around Roselia, to take hold and catch her within its grasp. Roselia didn't even try to dodge it; she allowed herself to be lifted and slammed onto the ground wordlessly.

With only a cute frown to show her pain, she got back up effortlessly, falling gracefully back into a fighting position.

I frowned. Tyler was right; she _was_ adept at enduring my attack.

"Poison Sting, Roselia!" Caroline beamed.

" _Of course,_ " Roselia smiled, sending a cloud of purple spikes from her rosey hands towards me.

I froze. I was useless when dealing with poison-type attacks, as I found once when I had accidentally strayed into an ornery Wurmple's territory. I'd felt that Poison Sting for weeks!

"Teleport!" Mistress countered.

Oh, right! Not wishing to relieve my previous experience with the attack heading towards me, I wasted no time in Teleporting behind Roselia. She paused in confusion, looking all around for me.

"Behind you, Roselia!" "Confusion!" Caroline and Mistress shouted at the same time.

Roselia turned just as I caught her in my invisible grasp. Feeling rather wicked, I threw her against a tree, where she let out an audible gasp before falling to the grass.

I watched her carefully, wary of the slightest movement. She got back to her feet, her cutesy demeanor all gone. She was annoyed now. I'd caught her off guard, and did some serious damage. She was no dummy; she wouldn't fall for the same trick twice now.

"Leech Seed!" Caroline commanded.

Although I was watching her, she surprised me by leaping high into the air. She was much faster than me, and I barely had time to blink before the seed she shot from her left rose was on me.

I cried out, feeling the life-draining vines entangle me. My feet literally tied, I fell to the ground. I wiggled and wiggled, trying in vain to free myself from the vines. But alas, physical strength was _definitely_ not my forte.

I cried out when the vines began their parasitic endeavor; stealing my energy and giving it back to Roselia, who looked rather pleased with herself. I couldn't break free! I was too weak!

But wait...A thought came to me, and as I turned to shout it out to Mistress, I saw she already had it covered.

"Use Magical Leaf to break free!"

"Wait, your Ralts knows Magical Leaf?!" Caroline paused in shock.

I grinned in triumph. I made my power go to my bound hands, which were pinioned to my sides. I directed the leaves to cut away my bonds, and they were eager to obey.

I stood back up, tired but still ready to fight.

"Confusion!" Mistress grinned.

Caroline was still processing what just happened, and she was too slow to command Roselia to evade. When Roselia was thrown against the ground, it was clear she was reaching her limit. Her knees were shaking, and her stance was unsteady. One more good hit, I reckoned.

"Ergh! We're not done just yet! Mega Drain, Roselia!" Caroline grimaced.

It took her a second, but eventually Roselia glowed green, sending a large transparent green beam at me.

"Teleport, Ralts! Light them _up!_ " Mistress shouted.

I wasn't a fire-type, but I understood the hidden meaning in Mistress' command. Taking a deep breath, I willed myself to appear in the spot I desired to be in. My psychic power hesitated for only a moment before obeying. Hopefully this plan would work; I was slowing down as well.

Thankfully, I managed to Teleport away a split second before Mega Drain reached me. Roselia whirled around, her Trainer already preparing a counterattack.

But I hadn't Teleported behind Roselia.

I had Teleported in the air _above_ Roselia.

"Confusion!" Mistress ordered as gravity began to take effect.

"Roselia, quick! Above you!" Caroline cried out, clutching her chest helplessly.

But I had already captured Roselia. I lifted her up as I fell, and threw her as hard as I could muster before my landing would break my concentration and free her.

She landed against a tree, creating a small Roselia-shaped dent in the trunk before she peeled off of it and fell to the ground. I landed clumsily, slipping when I reached the ground and falling solidly onto my back. I saw stars dance across my blurry vision for a few seconds, and I distantly heard Bernice say something. Then I heard Mistress and Tyler cheer.

After a few moments, I sat up, watching as Caroline went over to Roselia, hugging her briefly before sending her back into her Pokeball. Then Caroline handed a few bills to Mistress, and she gestured for us to return to the flower-clock.

" _We won?_ " I asked unnecessarily. Mistress beamed, and scooped me up into her arms.

"We did! You're the best, Ralts!" she gushed, hugging me tightly.

Caroline approached us with a big smile. "Well done! You've earned the right to go on the flower clock. Stand in the center and tell it you want to go to the next Trainer, and it'll take you there!"

"Thanks," Mistress said as we climbed the steps leading onto the clock.

Mistress, Tyler, Bernice, and myself walked onto the leaf-shaped bridge leading up to the center. When we were ready, Mistress ordered the clock to take us to our next opponent. There was a loud whirring sound, then the two leaf bridges spun around and around, until they stopped. The shorter bridge was facing northwest, while the longer bridge led directly east.

We got off the flower clock, where we met the next Trainer.

"Hiya! I'm Jenna. We'll be using three Pokemon each. You ready?" our opponent said as Bernice took up her position at the side.

"I'm Alanna. And I'm ready!" Mistress grinned.

"Alright, go Budew!" Jenna shouted eagerly, sending out a Budew.

" _Hello~"_ Budew smiled.

"Budew, huh? I wonder...Go, Linnéa!" Mistress shouted.

I frowned. A Budew battling another Budew…? What was Mistress up to?

Linnéa didn't say a word as she materialized. She gazed at our opponents with a dour frown.

"Let the battle begin!" Bernice announced.

"Linnéa, Worry Seed!" Mistress began.

" _Hah!_ " Linnéa shouted as she opened up the bud on top of her head. From out of it tiny little brown seeds flew from her bud and onto Budew, where they sunk into her skin.

Budew paused, then her eyes went wide with worry.

" _Taxes! Student loans! I can't pay for any of it!_ " she wailed. I had no idea what she was talking about, but it seemed to be effective.

"Mega Drain!" Mistress followed up.

A green aura surrounded Linnéa, and from her bud she shot a transparent green beam onto Budew. Budew flinched, but was otherwise unhurt, since both Pokemon were grass-types. The green beam returned to Linnéa, and she absorbed the energy without a word.

At least she was listening to Mistress. To be honest, I'd been afraid she would turn out to be another Shinx. I was relieved to see otherwise.

"Come on Budew, use Stun Spore!" Jenna ordered.

Budew seemed to ignore her fears for a second, and her bud opened to release a cloud of orange spores. The cloud wafted ominously towards Linnéa, who didn't seem to care.

"Dodge it!" Mistress commanded.

But Linnéa was too slow, and she was soon surrounded by the spores. As she hissed in distaste, her body locked up in paralysis, preventing her from being able to move even a muscle.

"Mega Drain!" Jenna said, exploiting this golden opportunity.

Linnéa was helpless as her energy was drained.

"Again!"

"Come on, Linnéa, fight it!" Mistress pleaded as another bout of Mega Drain arced towards the dour Budew.

If Linnéa was trying to overcome the paralysis, it wasn't visible to me. She seemed to sit there like a rock as she was hit with Mega Drain over and over again.

After a particularly powerful hit, Linnéa cried out, and she fell onto her stomach, unmoving.

"Linnéa is unable to battle!" Bernice announced.

Mistress groaned as Tyler made a sympathetic noise.

"Sorry about Lin, Tyler. Linnéa, return. ...Go, Terra!" Mistress said, recalling Linnéa and summoning Terra.

" _Ready,_ " Terra said as he materialized.

" _Linnéa was defeated by this Budew. Avenge her!"_ I told him. Terra nodded, and focused on Budew.

"Terra, Tackle!" Mistress commanded. Terra broke out into a run, and he successfully managed to hit Budew, who was agonizing over something called 'income tax'.

She skidded across the landscape, tearing up a part of the grass.

"Wah! Budew, are you okay?" Jenna fretted. Budew got up slowly, and nodded. "Oh, thank goodness. Stun Spore!"

"Dodge it, and Tackle!" Mistress shouted as the familiar orange wave of spores drifted towards Terra.

Terra raced to the side, where the Stun Spore's reach ceased. He ran around the dissipating cloud and rammed into Budew, sending her flying until she landed with a solid _thwack_ against a tree.

She collapsed to the ground ungracefully, where she didn't get back up again.

"Budew is unable to battle!" Bernice declared.

"Hey, that was easy," Mistress remarked, surprised. I was, too. But hey, if the rest of Jenna's Pokemon would be this easy, then all the better.

"Return Budew, and go Budew!" Jenna laughed, recalling Budew and sending out another Budew.

" _I am here!_ " the next Budew chirped happily.

"Budew, Mega Drain!" Jenna commanded.

" _How fun!_ " Budew gushed as she shot the green beam at Terra. He winced, but didn't appear too hurt.

"Tackle!" Mistress commanded. Once again, Terra made a mad dash for Budew, and he successfully rammed into her, causing her to land squarely onto her back.

"Again!"

"Get up, Budew! Dodge it!" Jenna cried out. Budew got swiftly to her feet, and leaped out of the way just in time. Terra skidded to a stop, turning to face his foe.

"Razor Leaf!" Mistress shouted. I gave her a confused look, and turned back to the battle.

" _Hah!"_ Terra shouted as he sent razor-sharp leaves from his stem and towards Budew.

"Dodge it!" Jenna said. Budew jumped high into the air, effectively evading the attack.

"Jump up and hit it with Tackle!" Mistress grinned. Ohh, _that_ was what she was planning.

Terra propelled himself towards Budew, slamming into her as she began to fall back down. She let out a pained cry, and both Pokemon landed a short distance away from each other. Terra was just fine, while Budew had all sorts of bruises on her. Another easy win for us.

Or so I thought. "Stun Spore, quick!"

Before any of us had a chance to react, Budew sent out the paralyzing wave at Terra. He was too close to her to dodge, and moments later he was stiff with paralysis.

"Mega Drain!" Jenna commanded, smiling triumphantly. As with Linnéa, Budew began repeatedly hitting Terra with Mega Drain. He completely unable to do anything about it. He was forced to just sit there and take the attacks.

When he had taken a thorough beating, though, something strange happened. A dark green aura surrounded him, and he looked up at Budew, glaring angrily at her.

" _What's going on?"_ I asked.

"Overgrow," Tyler said in awe, as if in response to me. "Terra's Ability. When his health is low, his grass-type attacks are strengthened."

"Razor Leaf, Terra!" Mistress commanded, upon impulse.

As if the paralysis wasn't even there, Terra launched a copious amount of sharp leaves from his stem. Budew was lacerated mercilessly, and she fell to the ground with a choked cry. Being resistant to the attack, she should not have been hurt so badly. Terra's Overgrow was certainly something!

"Mega Drain, Budew!" Jenna cried.

"Razor Leaf!" Mistress said instantly.

The attacks flew parallel to each other, and both Pokemon were hit. But it was Budew who fell, succumbing to the sheer power of Terra's Overgrow. Injured as Terra was, he was still capable of taking a hit. Barely.

"Budew is unable to battle!"

Mistress breathed a sigh of relief.

"We're not done yet! Time for my strongest Budew!" Jenna grinned.

"Cool it with the Budew already!" Mistress said irritably as yet another Budew came out.

" _Never!_ " the last Budew stormed at her.

"Take a nice long rest, Terra. Return," Mistress said, recalling the ever-grateful Terra. "And go Ralts!"

It was my time to shine! I met Budew on the battlefield, eager to be victorious. I could defeat this Budew easily, and I could use Teleport to evade any possible Stun Spores.

"Stun Spore, Budew!" Annnd, there it was.

"Teleport out of the way, Ralts!" Mistress ordered.

With pleasure. I directed my psychic powers to surround me and warp me behind Budew. It reacted instantly, and before I knew it I was between Budew and Jenna. Budew searched all around for me.

"Confusion, quick!" "Turn around, Budew!"

As I had done with Roselia, I snatched her up in my psychic grip just as she began to turn around. I threw her against the ground, where she actually _bounced,_ briefly.

" _Owie!_ " she pouted, getting slowly to her feet.

"Mega Drain!" Jenna ordered.

I let out a short cry as my energy was drained. Fortunately, it wasn't too much. I could still fight; I was just starting to tire was all.

"Confusion, Ralts!" Mistress shouted from the other side of the battlefield.

"Dodge!" Jenna countered.

Budew leaped away from her spot, evading capture.

"Stun Spore!"

"Teleport, then Confusion!"

I warped directly behind Budew before the spores could touch me. I was so close to her I was practically on top of her.

" _Hi,_ " I said in her ear as I caught her, lifted her, and threw her against a tree. My goodness, I was feeling mean today.

Budew crashed painfully against the tree, and like a banana she peeled off of it and landed awkwardly on the ground.

"Come on, Budew, get up! Mega Drain!" Jenna pleaded.

"One last Confusion, Ralts," Mistress directed.

Budew was too stunned to move, so I was gentle in defeating her. I only used enough force needed to knock her out, nothing more.

"Budew is unable to battle. Alanna is the victor!" Bernice decreed. I smiled faintly, returning to Mistress' side. Using so much power in such a short time was draining.

"Nicely done! You may challenge the next Trainer," Jenna beamed as she came over, handing Mistress $20.

We returned to the flower clock, and while we waited for the leaf bridges to cease their rotation Mistress healed Terra with a Potion and Paralyze Heal. He was grateful, but said he'd prefer a break more than anything.

She recalled him, and we went on to approach the next Trainer, who was on the western side of the room. According to Tyler, she would use only one Pokemon. I volunteered to fight, since my two teammates were either unconscious or tired.

"You've done well, making it this far, challenger. My name is Angela. If you defeat me, you can face Gardenia. Show me your strength! Roselia, blow them away!" Angela declared, releasing a Roselia.

" _I shall not fail,"_ she declared boldly.

"Go get 'em, Ralts," Mistress smiled confidently down at me.

I took a deep breath, calming myself as I went to meet my opponent. I just had to defeat one more Pokemon, and then we could face Gardenia. It would not be easy; Linnéa was down, and Terra, while healed of his injuries, deserved a rest. It was all up to me, and I was not at full strength. Granted, I'd had a slight reprieve between my fight with Caroline and Jenna's last Budew, but it hadn't been much of a rest.

It didn't matter, though. I would do my best anyway.

"Let the battle commence!" Bernice shouted.

"Confusion!" Mistress began.

"Dodge it, then Magical Leaf!" Angela countered with a sweep of her arm.

Roselia jumped away from her spot on the ground as I began my attack, shooting familiar-looking glowing leaves at me as she did so. The leaves locked onto my position, flying right at me.

"Counter with your own Magical Leaf!" Mistress commanded.

As quickly as I could, I raised my hands in the air, then flung them outwards. My own Magical Leaves flew from my hands, homing in on Roselia.

Our two attacks collided with each other, destroying most of the leaves. However, a few from each cloud escaped, and we were both mildly lacerated by the remnants.

Roselia only frowned, being resistant to the attack, but I hissed softly in pain. What a wonderful start.

"Teleport, then Confusion!" Mistress ordered.

It took me a second to summon up the power, but I successfully warped behind Roselia, caught her, and threw her against the grass.

" _Ouch!_ " she grimaced as I released her, getting back to her feet only with a slight hesitation.

I put a hand to my head, fighting back a sudden wave of fatigue. That combo had taken more out of me than I'd wanted it to. I hadn't realized I was this out of sorts.

"Leech Seed, Roselia!" Angela declared.

"Teleport!" Mistress shouted.

I was too slow to execute the move fast enough, and soon I was ensnared within energy-draining tendrils. I didn't cry out as I fell helplessly to the ground. I knew what Mistress would say next, and I would waste no time in freeing myself. Unlike Roselia, I had no way of healing myself in battle. I began to sluggishly shift my power from my mind to my hands, ready for the order.

"Cut yourself free with Magical Leaf, Ralts!"

It was a good thing I was prepared. Not a second after Mistress gave her command did the vines begin their horrible work. I winced for a split second, then I was free. The pain ended as quickly as it had come.

At least Angela had not heard my battle with Caroline's Roselia, otherwise she might have devised some clever counter-countermeasure.

Both Roselia and Angela faltered, not expecting such a quick escape from me.

"Confusion!" Mistress shouted.

Oh boy. Pushing past my growing exhaustion, I caught hold of Roselia, and lifted her up into the air until my will slipped. I couldn't regain control, she fell to the ground, where she landed with an audible " _Oof!"_

" _I hope...you had fun….because you're_ not _going to...get another chance,_ " Roselia leered at me in between pants.

That was ominous. What did she mean?

"Hmph! You've done well so far. While my Roselia is tired, your Ralts is faring no better as well," Angela frowned.

She wasn't lying. My body was yelling at me to stop, to go take a nap.

"We're still capable of defeating you," Mistress replied boldly, though secretly she was starting to have doubts.

I lifted my head slightly. I would not lose. I would not fail.

"We'll see. Stun Spore, Roselia!" Angela sniffed.

I looked up in alarm as Roselia sighed, then carefully began emitting a wave of golden spores towards me.

"Dodge with Teleport!" Mistress cried out frantically.

" _I can't,_ " I said miserably, trying feebly to reach the power inside. But my mind was murky, sluggish. I could not find the strength.

As the wave of spores washed over me, my muscles began to seize and lock up, preventing me from moving.

I cried out, trying with all my might to move even a finger.

But I could not.

It was truly frightening, to be trapped within your own body, to not be in control of limbs and muscles that once responded to my will with incredible ease.

Well. If I was paralyzed, then so would be Roselia.

I hadn't done this in a long time. When I had been attacked by Wurmple's Poison Sting, I had been poisoned. As the toxins spread through my body, an invisible path had opened up, unknown to all but me. The path led from my body to Wurmple's. I had discovered, to my sheer astonishment, that through the path I could enter Wurmple's body and make the same poison spread through _his_ body as well. It only worked when I was suffering from certain status conditions, and once I was inside the perpetrator's body I could only give them the same condition I was currently suffering from if applicable.

Now, I could sense that same path, leading from my body to Roselia's. She and her Trainer had cocky smiles on their faces, as if they thought we had no more tricks left.

Oh, but I did.

"Mega Drain!" Angela boomed triumphantly.

Even though I was paralyzed and fatigued, I traveled down the path effortlessly, until I slipped inside Roselia's mind, as easy as diving into water.

There, I commanded her muscles to freeze, to prevent her from moving as well. My will overrode hers, and with a shocked gasp she tensed, then froze. I winced. While entering her mind had taken no effort, commanding her body to be inflicted with paralysis did.

At least we were on equal footing now. One good hit to either of us and we'd be out like a light.

" _H-hey! What did you do to me?!"_ Roselia demanded in horror, struggling to move.

"Roselia! What happened?!" Angela cried out.

" **Synchronize: one of Ralts' two Ralts is inflicted with a status condition, it passes the condition onto its foe,** " Mistress' Pokedex explained when she pulled it out.

"Wow! That's really something," Tyler whistled.

"I guess, but now neither Ralts nor Roselia can move. Unless one of them can fight the paralysis, this battle's at a standstill," Mistress mused.

"Come on, Roselia! Fight past it and use Magical Leaf!" Angela commanded with a worried look in her eyes.

"Just one more Confusion, Ralts. I know you can do it," Mistress said to me.

Roselia and I struggled. We struggled as hard as we could to regain control of our own bodies. But we were tired, and hurt. It seemed this fight would end up a tie, but only a decisive victory would let us challenge Gardenia.

I gritted my teeth. What I was about to do would cost me, but I had no other choice. I delved deep within my mind, to my pitiful store of remaining power. I grabbed it all, every last bit.

Then, I shoved it as hard as I could.

Something shattered. Did a window break…?

Distantly, I heard a shrill ringing sound, that was not unlike a scream. I ignored it, and the excruciating pain between my eyes. I squeezed them shut, focusing only on snatching up Roselia and _launching_ her across the field.

Then, without warning, the pain and screaming completely stopped. I was unaware of anything but me and my unmoving body.

I heard the faintest of whispers, so quiet I was surprised I even registered it.

I had the briefest sensation of falling, then all was dark.

* * *

A gentle wave of comfort was washing over me. It surrounded me, embraced me, nurtured me. I felt my agony disappear without a trace. Dimly, I smiled, enjoying the pleasurable feeling. But soon, it began to fade away.

 _Don't go,_ I begged, willing for the wave to return.

But it did not, and soon I was all alone.

At some point in time (I could not say for how long; it could have been minutes, or days) I became aware that I was inside my Pokeball. Strangely, I felt completely fine. What had happened? The last thing I remembered was that _agonizing_ pain in the Gym as I tried to break past the paralysis.

I moved my arm experimentally, and sighed in relief when it obeyed without a single thought. Then I perked up. Mistress was nearby.

"Come on out, Ralts!"

My ball opened, and I was ejected into the outside world. When I materialized, I found that I was back in the Pokemon Center.

Ah, everything made sense now. I must have fainted, and was brought here to be healed.

Oh.

That meant I lost.

I wasn't as disappointed as I thought I would be. I was sad about failing Mistress, sure, but at the same time the rational part of me said that I hadn't been up to full strength when I'd fought Roselia. I certainly felt like I was back at full strength, though, so Roselia would stand no chance against me when I fought her again.

Mistress knelt down, embracing me. Tyler, Terra, and Linnéa were nearby, all staring at me. Tyler was still holding the Egg.

"Are you alright?" Mistress asked.

I looked up at her. " _I am now, yes. And I am ready to defeat Roselia once and for all this time._ "

Mistress scrunched up her brow in confusion. "What are you talking about? We won! We can face Gardenia now!"

Now it was my turn to be confused. " _But I fainted; I know I did! What happened?"_

"You did faint, but Roselia fainted first. One minute you were paralyzed, the next you were screaming at the top of your lungs and threw Roselia halfway across the room. Right after the ref declared us the winner did you collapse," Mistress explained.

" _You sounded like you were in real pain; I could hear you from inside my ball,_ " Terra said gravely.

" _I...didn't want to lose…_ " I whispered, unsure of how to process this.

"I understand, but don't overextend yourself unnecessarily, okay? I couldn't live with myself if you had been seriously injured," Mistress said, hugging me.

" _I will try not to,_ " I said.

Mistress released me, and stood back up.

"The Gym closes in an hour; shall we wait until tomorrow or should we go for it?" she asked all of us.

" _Huh? What time is it?_ " I blinked. Why was the Gym about to close? Were they closing early today?

" _8 o'clock. You were asleep for a long time, Ralts, much longer than Linnéa and I were,_ " Terra told me kindly.

" _8 o'clock?!"_ I screeched. I'd been asleep for a third of a day!

I looked up at the humans. " _I want to fight! I'm ready!"_

"Are you sure? Shouldn't you rest a little bit more?" Mistress fretted.

" _Resting is boring; I want a_ real _challenge,_ " Linnéa grumbled. " _Not like that stupid Budew."_

" _I wouldn't mind another battle, now that I've had a chance to rest,"_ Terra said amiably.

" _I am ready,_ " I repeated sincerely.

Mistress threw her hands up in submission. "Alright, alright. I guess we're going to challenge the Gym, unless you want your Pokemon to face Gardenia in the morning?" she said, the latter part to Tyler.

He laughed. "Terra and Linnéa agree with Ralts. If they're both willing, I'm fine with it. Plus, I'm excited to watch my first Gym battle too."

"Alright, let's hurry on over, then, before they close," Mistress nodded as we headed back to the Gym.

"Can you tell me about the Pokemon she'll use?" she asked Tyler.

"Well, Cherrim is…"

As the humans talked, I looked back at Linnéa. For someone who wanted a second go-around, she didn't look too happy about it.

" _What did you mean when you said Budew wasn't a challenge? You lost to her!"_ I asked.

Linnéa flicked a bored glance at me. " _I let her win. I knew I could have defeated her if I wanted to."_

" _You WHAT?"_ I demanded, aghast. " _We were fighting for the right to challenge Gardenia and you purposely_ lost?!"

" _I hate battles I know I can win. They're boring. What's the point of battling when winning is easy?"_ Linnéa scowled.

" _At least tell me you'll actually_ try _to beat Gardenia's Pokemon!"_ I demanded.

" _Only if they're worthy,"_ was all Linnéa would say.

" _That's as close to a 'yes' as you'll get from her, Ralts,_ " Terra advised with a shake of his head.

I sighed, and fell silent.

As the moon began its slow ascent, we soon reached the Gym. Upon entering, the three Gym Trainers were all chatting with a woman with honey-colored hair and green clothes. All four turned upon hearing us enter.

"Oh! Alanna! You're back!" Caroline exclaimed.

The unknown woman stepped forward. "Hello, my name's Gardenia. You must be Alanna. Great job on defeating my students! And hello again Tyler, glad to see your Pokemon are doing well. Have you all come to challenge me?"

Mistress straightened. "I am, but Tyler's just going to watch."

Gardenia beamed. "Wonderful! You're just in time, too. We were about to close up for the night. Follow me."

We followed her onto the flower clock. Gardenia ordered it to take us to the opposite side of the room. She led us through a door in the wall into a huge grassy battlefield with a Pokeball symbol painted in the middle. Bernice was already there, standing to the side of the field. To the left and right of the field were risers for any audience members to sit. Tyler walked over to the stands with the Egg as Mistress and Gardenia took up their places on the battlefield.

"The battle between Gym Leader Gardenia and challenger Alanna will now begin! Each Trainer will use three Pokemon. When all three Pokemon are defeated, the match will end. Only the challenger may switch out Pokemon. She may also have the first move. Are both Trainers ready?" Bernice announced formally.

"I am," Mistress nodded stoically.

"As am I!" Gardenia smiled.

"Then let the battle commence!"


	8. A Blooming Battle and Ghostly Mansions

"Go, Terra!" Mistress shouted steadily, sending out the Turtwig.

" _And so it begins. I am ready,_ " Terra said sagely as he materialized onto the battlefield.

"Oh, you're using Tyler's Turtwig, are you? *giggle* An interesting strategy! Cherrim, come on out!" Gardenia laughed, sending out a purple flower-like Pokemon.

" _Ah, a challenger!_ " she said cheerfully upon seeing Terra. Terra said nothing, only adjusted his stance.

" **Cherrim, the Blossom Pokemon, and the evolved form of Cherubi. If it senses strong sunlight, it opens its folded petals to absorb the sun's rays with its whole body,** " Mistress' Pokedex explained helpfully when she pulled it out.

"Hm. Terra, Tackle!" Mistress ordered, putting it back into her bag.

" _On it_ ," Terra agreed as he bounded towards Cherrim, his head lowered.

But Gardenia only smiled. "Grass Knot, Cherrim!"

Cherrim giggled, and Terra tripped unexpectedly as he continued to charge. With a cry, he landed right on his face. I winced in sympathy.

"What? Terra, you okay?" Mistress faltered, confused.

Terra ot to his feet, shaking his head free of lingering clods of dirt. " _Yes, I am._ "

"Magical Leaf!" Gardenia's voice interrupted. Mistress and Terra looked up too late, and Terra was viciously lacerated by the colorful, levitating leaves.

He let out a quick hiss as he was pushed back a few inches.

"Don't give in, Terra. Tackle!" Mistress encouraged.

With a determined look on his face, Terra once more began bounding towards Cherrim.

"Grass Knot!" Gardenia laughed.

"Dodge it, quick," Mistress countered.

Terra jumped, and now I could see how the move operated. Two blades of grass elongated, and tied themselves together, set to trip up poor Terra, had he not evaded the attack. I was impressed; I'd never seen a clever, subtle attack like that before!

Terra landed safely on the ground, and crashed into Cherrim with a resolute _wham!_

" _Eeep!"_ Cherrim squeaked as she was sent flying through the air. She bounced once before managing to get back onto her feet. She shook her head in a dazed fashion.

"Oho, a perfect Tackle from Terra! I'd expect nothing less! Cherrim, Leech Seed!" Gardenia beamed enthusiastically.

" _Right!_ " Cherrim stormed, flicking the all-too-familiar seed at Terra.

"Get out of the way!" Mistress ordered fretfully. She was not ready to reveal our get-out-of-Leech-Seed card just yet, I sensed. She wanted to keep it a secret for as long as possible.

Thankfully, Terra was swift, and he neatly avoided the energy-draining vice.

"Tackle, again!" Mistress followed up.

But Gardenia only smiled again, like we'd fallen into a trap. "Safeguard!"

From out of nowhere, a light blue dome surrounded Cherrim. Terra crashed into the dome, and fell on his back, temporarily stunned.

The dome faded, and Gardenia was quick to order Cherrim to use Magical Leaf as Terra struggled to get his feet back on the ground. The glowing leaves lacerated him once more, and he let out a quiet wail as small cuts appeared on his body.

The good news was, the attack managed to switch him from belly-up to on his side, and he was able to stand again, no longer helpless. Also, he didn't look that bad, as he was resistant to grass-type attacks.

"Tackle!" Mistress commanded. An idea had come to her, and she was eager to test it out. I couldn't sense what it was, only her excitement. I frowned at her, wondering what she was planning.

"This again? Grass Knot, Cherrim," Gardenia smiled in amusement.

I waited for Mistress to order him to dodge, but she did not. Terra was tripped by the two blades of grass, and as he began falling Mistress commanded him to use Withdraw.

Mid-fall, Terra curled up into a somewhat-ball-shaped lump. He rolled across the ground, his momentum being carried over towards his foe.

"Tackle!" Mistress ordered again, and Terra sprang from his rolled-up state, connecting smoothly with the ground as he continued his dash.

"Wha-?" Gardenia blinked and took a step back, surprised by this impromptu maneuver. Terra slammed into Cherrim with all his might, and the purple flower wailed piteously as she landed roughly in the grass, creating a long rut where she slid.

She lay there for several seconds.

"Wahh! Cherrim, are you alright?" the Gym Leader fretted, biting a fingernail worriedly.

" _Ah…_ " Cherrim moaned, slowly standing back up. She'd taken a good beating from Terra, and it was clear she wasn't going to last much longer. Having watched the fight, it seemed to me like she was adept at stopping physical attackers in their tracks, and not so much at enduring them. If a foe managed to get past her defenses, she was no good.

I turned to alert Mistress about this, but I recalled her asking for Tyler's advice on our way over to the Gym. So, I stayed quiet, as surely he must have told her about Cherrim's weaknesses.

One more Tackle would get her, I mused. The poor Pokemon was trembling ever so slightly, and she was breathing heavily.

"Wow! I've never seen someone use Withdraw to escape Grass Knot before! I still have much to learn about grass-types, it seems," Gardenia marveled, whistling in appreciation.

"We've got more of that up our sleeves. Terra, Tackle!" Mistress gloated, half-bluffing. We certainly had a few tricks, but would they be enough? After all, this was only the beginning of the challenge.

"Grass Knot!" Gardenia countered as we knew she would.

"Dodge it!" Mistress counter-countered.

Gardenia smiled. "Leech Seed!"

Mistress paused, taken aback by the Leader's choice of attack.

Terra, mid-leap, was helpless to avoid the brown seed Cherrim flung at him. The seed landed on his head, and instantly ensnared him in its vines. He fell clumsily to the ground, struggling in vain to free himself.

Something was off about the vines, though. They were dull and lifeless. Most peculiar of all, though, they did not drain Terra's energy.

"Leech Seed doesn't work on grass-types, but they serve another purpose," Gardenia explained upon seeing Mistress' confused face. "Magical Leaf!"

Terra was forced to just sit there helplessly and be cut by the knife-sharp leaves. However, I noticed that the leaves had also shredded parts of the Leech Seed. Mistress noticed it too.

As Gardenia ordered Cherrim to use Magical Leaf once more, Mistress directed Terra to push against the dead vines with all his might. He did, and with a snap the vines broke and fell away from his body.

"Awesome! Now Razor Leaf!" Mistress cheered, jumping in the air.

Terra sent out wickedly-sharp leaves of his own, and they collided with Cherrim's incoming Magical Leaf. The two attacks canceled each other out, and Mistress swiftly had Terra use Tackle yet again.

Gardenia was too slow to issue a countermove, and her Cherrim was rammed brutally into the ground. She did not stir.

"Cherrim is unable to battle!" Bernice declared, waving a flag in our direction.

"Nice job, you guys!" Tyler called from the stands.

Mistress flashed him a quick grin before returning to the fight. Terra beamed at his Trainer before focusing on Gardenia.

"Huh! Not bad! But let's see if Terra can hold his own against my own Turtwig, eh?" Gardenia chuckled as she replaced Cherrim with her own Turtwig.

" _Ready,_ " Gardenia's Turtwig announced as he materialized onto the field.

"Terra, Tackle!" Mistress began. She was wary, and was baiting Gardenia to see how she'd react.

"Grass Knot!" Gardenia retaliated. Nothing new, it seemed.

"Dodge it," Mistress countered, her suspicion rising even higher. Her cautiousness made me itch. Something wasn't right.

Our fears were confirmed when Gardenia smiled that amused smile as Terra jumped to avoid the blades of grass. "Grass Knot, again."

Turtwig's eyes glowed, and this time a blade of grass _grabbed_ Terra's foot as he was in the air. It yanked viciously, sending him straight onto the ground. He wailed, and after the attack released him it took him a good few seconds to get up.

"Grass Knot can do that?" Mistress asked in awe.

Now Terra was the one who was battered and bruised. Between Cherrim's attacks and this specialized Grass Knot, he was not doing so well. But, his Overgrow would soon kick in, I remembered. Then he'd be even stronger, and perhaps he'd be able to take down Turtwig.

"Razor Leaf!" Gardenia declared.

"Counter it with your own!" Mistress retaliated.

The two Turtwigs sent out a cloud of razor-sharp leaves. The two attacks flew into each other, disintegrating upon contact and thus neutralizing the other's horde.

"Tackle!" Mistress followed up.

"Grass Knot, quick!" Gardenia commanded.

"Withdraw!" Mistress said swiftly.

Terra broke out into a slow run, and as Turtwig tripped him with Grass Knot he curled up into himself. Like before, he used his momentum to propel him towards Turtwig, and when he was close enough he sprang back to normal and slammed deftly into the opposing foe.

Turtwig was pushed backwards a few feet, and he grimaced. Otherwise, he wasn't too badly hurt.

"Tackle, again!" Mistress ordered, clenching her fist.

"Reflect!" Gardenia ushered as Terra, who was quite close to Turtwig, began another bound toward him.

A transparent, light blue screen appeared in front of Turtwig. Terra managed to break it when he collided with it, but it appeared to have absorbed most of the blow, as Turtwig was only marginally damaged when he was hit by Tackle.

"Razor Leaf!" Gardenia commanded.

Terra was still recovering from his Tackle, plus he was mere inches away from Turtwig, so he was unable to evade the leaves.

With a painful cry, he bounced back a few times before coming to a stop over by the center of the field.

"Terra? How ya feeling?" Mistress asked cautiously.

In response, a dark green aura began rising from Terra. The Turtwig got a hard look on his face, and wearily he stood on shaking legs.

Overgrow had activated.

Terra turned, and gave Mistress an enigmatic look. Mistress seemed to understand, for she nodded. Terra nodded in turn, and faced Turtwig.

"Razor Leaf!" Mistress commanded.

"Counter with your own!" Gardenia ordered, using our own technique.

As the two Turtwigs sent the horde of leaves flying again, Mistress had Terra use Tackle. He leapt for Turtwig, bounding across the field as the leaves nullified each other overhead. He slammed solidly into Turtwig, and Mistress quickly ordered a point-blank Razor Leaf.

Turtwig was hit by the rapid succession of Tackle and Razor Leaf, and as he lay stunned on the ground his own Overgrow activated. I raised an eyebrow, impressed that Turtwig was that close to fainting already. Although, he'd been hit by two full-power Tackles, a severely weakened Tackle, and an overpowered Razor Leaf. Perhaps it wasn't _that_ much of a surprise after all.

"Razor Leaf, Turtwig! I know you can do it!" Gardenia cried.

Most of Terra's remaining strength had gone into his two attacks, and he put up no resistance as Turtwig managed to summon up the energy for a Razor Leaf.

The leaves lacerated him cruelly, and with a cry, Terra fell.

His eyes closed, and his body went limp.

"Terra is unable to battle!" Bernice declared.

I heard cheers from the stands. I looked, and Gardenia's three students had magically appeared there. I blinked. I hadn't heard them come in; where had they come from?

Mistress scowled. "Ergh. *sigh* Thanks, Terra. You were amazing out there. You deserve a good rest." She glanced at me as she recalled Terra. "Ralts, go on out there, will ya?"

I beamed, and raced to meet Gardenia's Turtwig. He was no match for me; I'd win this fight and the next one after that too!

I studied him warily. He was incredibly weak, and all of us knew it. One Confusion from me would ensure his defeat. I was more concerned about how Overgrow worked. Where did that hidden strength come from? From his mind, like my own powers? Or did it lay dormant in his blood until it was needed? Hmm…

"Turtwig, Razor Leaf!" Oh, right, the battle.

"Dodge it, Ralts!" Mistress urged. I didn't even need to be swift; Turtwig was too tired to prepare the attack efficiently, and I barely had to sidestep to avoid it.

"Confusion!" Mistress followed up.

Using as minimal of my power as I had to, I picked up Turtwig, and slammed him against the ground just strongly enough to make him faint. I didn't want to be cruel, and besides, I would need my strength against the final Pokemon, whatever it may be.

"Turtwig is unable to battle!" Bernice declared unsurprisingly.

Tyler gave a cheery shout which was eclipsed by sympathetic noises from the girls in the audience,

"Well done, Turtwig. Take a good long rest," Gardenia said gently as she recalled her Pokemon. She grinned at us. "You sure picked a good time to challenge me. Normally I'd have the gift of the sun to power up my friends. But sun or no sun, my last Pokemon will prove to be your end! Roserade, show them your beauty!"

A tall green Pokemon that looked quite similar to a Roselia emerged onto the field. She smiled gently down at me, silently promising my end to be swift and painless. I gulped, and stared her down warily. This would be no easy win, that's for sure. I could sense the strength emanating from her like a cool breeze.

" **Roserade, the Bouquet Pokemon, and the evolved form of Roselia. Each of its hands contains different toxins, but both hands can jab with near-fatal power,** " my Trainer's Pokedex chirped.

I shuddered. Near-fatal toxins? No thank you, not for this Ralts!

"Stun Spore, Roserade!" Gardenia began.

" _But of course~"_ Roserade said in a voice like sweet honey as she emitted a cloud of orange spores at me.

I seized up in fright. Just earlier today I'd almost shattered my mind trying to break through paralysis. I'd no intentions of repeating the past again!

Fortunately, I didn't have to. "Teleport out of the way!"

I knew what Mistress was up to. I did as she bade, warping behind Roserade. Gardenia hadn't seen my battles with her students, so she did not know of this trick.

"Turn around and use Poison Sting!" Gardenia commanded.

"Confusion!" Mistress shouted vehemently.

I caught Roserade as she was started to face me. Being a bigger Pokemon than I was used to lifting, it took me a moment to summon the power needed to raise her high enough to do any damage.

I let go once she was a few feet in the air. I'd have to rely on fall damage from now on, if I wanted to conserve my energy.

Roserade fell clumsily to the ground, and it took her a second to get back up. She was not pleased, and was only too eager to obey when Gardenia ordered her to use Poison Sting.

Mistress ordered me to dodge, but I was too slow. I shrieked as the needle-like pink barbs pierced my skin, injecting their toxins into my bloodstream.

I shuddered, but luckily my body was able to fend off the toxins, and thus I was not poisoned. For now.

"Confusion, Ralts!" Mistress commanded. I took a quick deep breath, and prepared my psychic net.

"Dodge, and Magical Leaf!" Gardenia countered.

Roserade leaped gracefully away before my net could catch her, and with a twirl she sent out the familiar glowing leaves from her hands. The leaves locked onto my position, and I knew better than to try and escape with Teleport. They'd only turn around and zoom for me until I was hit.

However, Mistress had her own ideas. "Use your own Magical Leaf too!"

Ohhhh! Eagerly, I flung my hands towards Roserade, sending my own glowing leaves from my fingertips. My attack crashed into Roserade's and the two hordes of leaves disintegrated, completely nullified.

"Teleport, and Confusion!" Mistress continued.

Knowing that Gardenia and Roserade were expecting me to warp between them, I instead warped a foot away from Roserade. She'd already half-turned around, and by the time she realized I was in front of her I was already lifting her high up into the air.

I dropped her, and took a few steps back so there was at least some distance between us. I put my hands on my knees, panting briefly. That Poison Sting and lifting Roserade twice was taking more out of me than I wanted!

"You okay, Roserade?" Gardenia asked as Roserade picked herself back up again.

She brushed herself off, glaring daggers at me. " _I've seen better, but nothing I cannot handle._ "

"Good. Poison Sting," Gardenia nodded.

Though I'd put a few yards between us, I was still too close to Roserade in order to dodge effectively. Once more, the poisonous barbs pierced my skin. This time, to my horror, I could feel poison begin to course through me, heading straight for my heart.

I cried out as a wave of nausea hit me like a brick. I looked at Roserade, but the invisible path to her body was locked. It made sense. Alas, I could not poison a poison-type.

"Ralts!" Mistress fretted as my vision started blur.

"Good job, Roserade. Stun Spore!" Gardenia beamed.

I could dimly make out an orange cloud heading towards me.

"Teleport and Confusion, Ralts! I know you can do it!" Mistress urged.

I knew my time was limited, but her faith in me gave me strength. Calling up the last of my power, I managed to Teleport to Roserade's left side. Picking her up near about made me black out, but determination made me hold on. Once she was a few yards up in the air, I let go.

Both she and I fell to the ground, but she recovered first. The sad part was, it took her a good thirty seconds to do so.

I stood on unsteady legs, and my vision was all but gone. I _barely_ heard Gardenia give the order for Poison Sting, and soon I felt sharp pricks all over my body, no doubt from the attack.

I couldn't help it; I fainted.

* * *

Thankfully, I wasn't out for that long. I woke up in Mistress' arms with her smiling gently down at me.

"You did great, Ralts," she told me, handing me a Pecha Berry.

" _I'm sorry I failed…_ " I murmured, not meeting her eyes as I took the berry and nibbled on it.

She set me down gently. "You did your best, and I'm proud of you for that. But this battle isn't over yet. Come on out, Linnéa!"

Oh, that did _not_ make me feel any better. I felt worry course through me as the Budew was called out. She said not a word, only stared at our foes with great disdain.

 _Please let her take this fight seriously,_ I prayed fervently, finishing my berry. I breathed a sigh of relief as the lingering traces of poison left my system.

The good part was, by my estimate I'd taken Roserade down to one-third of her strength. So, even if Linnéa decided not to try we _should_ still win.

Maybe. Hopefully. There was always the chance Lin would decide to lose right away, making us fail our Gym challenge.

"Oh, you're using Linnéa too? Wonderful! She looks incredible!" Gardenia gushed, clasping her hands together.

Lin scowled at the Gym Leader. I couldn't tell if that meant she would defeat Gardenia out of spite, or let herself lose because Gardenia wasn't interesting enough to hold her attention.

"Stun Spore, Linnéa!" Mistress commanded.

Linnéa was silent as the bud on her head opened, and released a cloud of orange spores.

"Evade the spores, Roserade! And Magical Leaf!" Gardenia shouted in response.

Roserade somersaulted underneath the cloud until it dissipated harmlessly away, and shot a legion of the leaves at Linnéa.

" _Ergh!_ " she hissed in distaste as she was lacerated. She was sent back a couple inches, but was otherwise unscathed.

"Mega Drain!" Mistress commanded.

Lin sent a powerful transparent green beam of energy at the tired Roserade. The beam caught her, and began leeching away her strength. Roserade wailed, and the beam returned to Linnéa, whose body glowed as she absorbed Roserade's health.

" _Budew, you_ will _pay for that,_ " Roserade hissed, glowering at Lin. Lin only rolled her eyes.

" _Whatever,"_ she replied.

"Magical Leaf!" Gardenia shouted.

It took Roserade a few moments to summon up the energy, but she managed to complete the attack and sent it flying at Linnéa. Again, Lin was cut, but wasn't damaged too badly.

I watched all of this nervously. It _seemed_ like Linnéa was determined to win, but there was no telling what was going on in the mind of the apathetic Budew.

"Run towards Roserade!" Mistress ordered.

I was confused by this command, but if Lin was, she gave no sign of it. She only sighed in annoyance and did as she was asked.

"Grass Knot!" Gardenia was quick to counter.

But it appeared Mistress was counting on this. "Jump over it, and Stun Spore!"

I hadn't known that Roserade knew Grass Knot, and Mistress was suspicious that she did. So, she'd decided to take a gamble, speculating that Gardenia would think she was ignorant.

It appeared that Mistress had called Gardenia's bluff, and Linnéa wasted no time in showering Roserade in paralyzing spores. When the spores touched Roserade, she immediately locked up in paralysis.

" _No!_ " both she and Gardenia cried.

"Mega Drain," Mistress said, sensing victory ahead.

Linnéa drained Roserade's energy, then again, and again. Each time, Roserade tried to break free of her immobilization, but failed to move even a muscle.

At last, it came to an end when Mistress ordered one more all-out Mega Drain.

Linnéa charged up her Mega Drain, her scowl growing more and more vicious. After a few moments, she shot off her beam, screaming, " _This fight is_ STUPID _!"_

The attack once again enclosed itself around Roserade, and drained the last of Roserade's energy. She fell, and did not get up.

"Roserade is unable to battle! The victor is Alanna!" Bernice declared, waving both her flags.

Me, Mistress, and Tyler cheered wildly, while Linnéa stood there with a brutal pout on her face.

Gardenia's students groaned, and Tyler raced to meet us on the battlefield.

"That was _amazing_!" he exclaimed, his eyes shining. "I've never seen anything like it! All of you were outstanding!"

Mistress grinned, and picked up Linnéa. "I couldn't have done it without your Pokemon. Especially Linnéa."

" _Put me down this instant!_ " Linnéa snapped, struggling in Mistress' arms.

Mistress set her down, and she stood behind Tyler's legs as he handed her the Egg Cynthia gave her.

Gardenia came over to us, a broad smile on her face.

"That, without a doubt, was a remarkable victory. Though you used Tyler's Pokemon, you treated them as if they were your own. I'm proud to have seen them fight. It is with great honor I bestow upon you the Forest Badge!" she said, handing Mistress a badge that looked like three trees together in a triangle. She also handed her $205.

Mistress took the items and beamed. "Thank you, Gardenia. Our battle was truly outstanding."

"You should try the Hearthome City Gym," Bernice advised, coming to join us. "It's east of Oreburgh City, just over Mt. Coronet. I'm sure you'll find a good challenge there."

Mistress groaned. "You mean I have to go through Eterna Forest and Floaroma _again?_ "

Bernice laughed gaily. "Well, a bridge leading straight from Eterna to Oreburgh is being built as we speak. Coincidentally, construction should be finished within a day or two. You could wait until then. It'd certainly save you some time."

"Ah, perfect," Mistress sighed.

"We'd better start closing, Miss Gardenia," Bernice said to Gardenia, who nodded.

"Well, we'll get out of your hair, then. Goodbye everyone! Thanks for the battle and badge!" Mistress said, turning to leave.

We said our goodbyes, and walked out of the Gym. I blinked in the sudden change of light. The moon had fully risen, and was shaped in an elegant crescent.

We headed to the Pokemon Center, where Terra took a short nap, exhausted by his fight. The humans chatted about various things, and I took the opportunity to speak to Linnéa.

" _So, Roserade was worthy, huh?"_ I asked her.

" _I guess. I mostly just wanted to smack that stupid smile off of stupid Gardenia's face,_ " she shrugged angrily.

" _I thought you liked battling,_ " I inquired.

" _I hate everything,_ " Lin told me. She wouldn't say anything else, but as I turned to leave she added, " _But battling is okay._ "

* * *

A couple hours later, Terra woke up freshly rested from his nap. He was pleased to hear that we'd won, and proud to have helped Mistress earn her badge.

Mistress stood, and gestured for Tyler to follow her. "C'mon, Tyler, let's go check out that haunted house."

Both he and I did not approve. "But it's two hours until midnight!" he protested. " _And there might be ghosts!"_ I added.

"Exactly! It's the perfect time to explore one! If you don't want to, you don't have to. But I'm going explorin'," Mistress shrugged as she headed for the door.

I groaned, and followed her. I did not like ghost-types, but I didn't want Mistress getting hurt. Humans could not defend themselves against Pokemon as I could, after all.

Tyler sighed, but followed as well.

At least it was clear tonight, unlike last night. The air was crisp and cool, and a gentle warm breeze rustled through the town.

The humans took out their flashlights, and soon we entered Eterna Forest.

It was as dark and eerie as it had been yesterday. The only good thing about it was that it wasn't raining. Even so, I thought I kept seeing eyes in the shadows between the trees. I shuddered, but Mistress didn't seem to notice them.

Finally, we arrived at the abandoned mansion. It was two stories high, and had clearly been unused for years. Most of the windows were broken, the paint had all but peeled off, and as I watched one of the few remaining shingles fell from the roof.

It looked to be a ghost's paradise.

Indeed, my skin prickled when I spotted a shadow move inside the top-left window. I made an undignified squeak, and hid behind Mistress' legs.

"Wow! Didja see that?!" Mistress exclaimed, pointing at the window.

"Unfortunately, yes," Tyler sighed, wringing his hands nervously. "Why can't we do this during the day, when it's much less scary?"

"I ain't scared of no ghosts," Mistress replied resolutely. "C'mon, it'll be fun!"

She raced for the entrance.

"Define 'fun'," Tyler muttered under his breath as we followed her.

Naturally, the front door was unlocked, and it led to a spacious living room. It appeared the last occupants had taken most of their things with them, as nothing but dust and a few bare shelves greeted us.

There were rooms to the side, and I spotted one more behind the stairs leading to the second floor.

Mistress and I explored the rooms to the left, while Tyler and his Pokemon explored the room behind the stairs.

The rooms we looked at held decayed cardboard boxes filled with useless junk. Broken lamps, cracked picture frames; all worthless.

Mistress was disappointed, but I was on the alert for any signs of ghost-type trickery. None bothered us, but Tyler wasn't as fortunate.

" _YAHHHHHHHHH!_ " we heard him scream from the room he was in.

We raced back out to the living room, and watched as Tyler and Terra frantically ran from the unknown room. Lin followed a few moments later, looking quite bored.

Mistress caught him as he raced past us. "What happened?!"

He took a few shaky breaths. "I found the dining hall," he began, "and against my better judgment I decided to look around. When I entered, there was no one there, but after I came out of the kitchen there was a...man...just floating in midair in front of the table!"

Mistress' eyes gleamed, and she managed to get him to go back into the dining hall/kitchen.

A grand table as long as ten Gardevoirs greeted us, and to the left was an old kitchen with rusted appliances. We thoroughly searched the room, but there was no sign of the ghost human.

" _He wasn't_ that _scary. All he did was look at us and wander off,"_ Linnéa shrugged. Did _anything_ perturb her…?

The rest of the first floor yielded no other ghosts and nothing interesting. So, we turned our reluctant (well, everyone but Mistress was) attention to the second floor.

The second floor had more boxes, but one room held an old-fashioned bed. The slightest touch sent plumes of dust into the stale air, so we didn't look at it too closely.

We were about to explore the left side of the floor when we heard a noise coming from one of the rooms. We all shared an apprehensive glance, then we cautiously made our way to the room. When we peeked in, however, we found a teal-haired girl throwing a Pokeball at a red floating Pokemon. A purple Pokemon stood next to her, preening his wings.

Wait...I recognized this girl! She was Tanya, the one who helped us save Professor Rowan from Team Galactic!

"Tanya? What are you doing here?" Tyler asked in confusion, entering the room. He knew her? How?

Tanya turned around casually, pocketing her new Pokemon. "Oh hello Tyler. I thought I heard you screaming like a girl a few minutes ago."

She looked past him, at us. "Oh, Alanna and Ralts! Sup?"

"Heya. What are you doing here?" Mistress asked, coming into the room too. There was a large plasma-screen TV on the back wall. Amazingly, it somehow still worked.

"Oh you know, catching ghosts and being awesome. What are you doing with my brother?" Tanya shrugged.

"'Brother'?" Mistress and I chorused, looking from Tyler to Tanya. The two looked nothing alike.

Tyler sighed. "We're step-siblings. You _would_ go trespass inside a haunted mansion, Tanya."

"Hey, no one's here to persecute me, so what's the harm?" Tanya winked. "So what are you doing with an actual human being, Ty?"

"Ralts and I were lost in the forest last night, and he led us out. He let me borrow his Pokemon for the day against the Eterna Gym," Mistress explained, looking at an old painting of a girl with a Roselia. She gestured at the purple Pokemon. "Is that your Piplup? It looks different."

Tanya beamed. "It evolved just yesterday! It's more cuter than ever!"

" _I am 700% more handsome than before. No other Pokemon could ever hope to match my debonair charms,_ " he sniffed haughtily.

" **Prinplup, the Penguin Pokemon, and the evolved form of Piplup. Because every Prinplup considers itself to be the most important, they can never form a group,"** Mistress Pokedex explained.

"Huh. What was that Pokemon you just caught just now?" Mistress asked.

Tanya called it out. It was mainly red, with a blue outline and two lightning-shaped arms.

" _I'm free!"_ it beamed.

" **Rotom, the Plasma Pokemon. Its electric-like body can enter some kinds of machines and take control in order to make mischief,"** said my Trainer's Pokedex.

"I found it in this TV right here. Can you believe it? I'm thinking if I get it to possess a washing machine it'll save me the trouble of having to wash my own clothes," Tanya mused.

She stood up suddenly, and looked at Mistress. "Battle me."

She blinked. "What?"

"My brother doesn't pay attention to anything other than plants. You're the first human he's spoken to in forever. I wanna see why," Tanya explained. Tyler blushed.

"Ah, could we do it tomorrow? I only have two Pokemon, and my Ralts is tired from our Gym challenge," Mistress declined. She wasn't lying; I was yawning profusely.

Tanya shrugged, and recalled both of her Pokemon. "Fine by me. There's nothing in this place, so let's head to Eterna, shall we?"

Tyler and I were only too happy to agree, and so we escorted Tanya out of the mansion and to the Pokemon Center. I was thoroughly exhausted by the events of today, so it did not take me long at all to fall asleep.

I dreamed of ghosts, and floating humans coming out of televisions.

* * *

 **I made a huge mistake in the last post; I'd forgotten that Leech Seed doesn't affect grass-types. Whoopsies! I promise I'll do better! ;-;**

 **The next error-free post shall include: a rival battle, undercover officers, and a serious theft.**


End file.
